Dragging up the anchor . . .

Yesterday I shared a story about getting the anchor stuck, and despite our best efforts, we could not pull it up. Click here if you missed yesterday’s meditation.

So . . . we were stuck.

Did we have options???

Yes, but none were exactly straightforward or easy!

When we get stuck, there are always options; some are simply less desirable than others.

In our situation, we could . . .

1.  Dive down to try to pull it up
2. Diving in Lake Norman is not on my top 10 list (or 10000000000 lists) of things to do. You just never know what might be underneath.
3. Cutting the anchor
4. Somehow I couldn’t see driving home to say, “Hey, guess what!?! I’ve lost the anchor!”
5. Sitting out there until someone came along with a scuba outfit
6. That’s ludicrous

After a few minutes of sitting in a perplexed state, I remembered observing Tom navigate a stuck anchor by moving the boat slightly forward and back, repeatedly, just enough to give the rope a tug in both directions.

A few minutes later, VOILA! Up came the anchor!

Roots.

Sludge.

Some plastic rope (that wasn’t from our boat).

The anchor was nasty but back safely in its “anchor hold.”

A little work was needed to restore it, but ultimately it was as good as new.

Left to my own devices, I might still be sitting on Lake Norman, trying to figure out how to get unstuck.

Same is true in life. Often we feel “stuck” and don’t even know how we got there.

Below are some common reasons why we get stuck.

Recognizing and identifying the “why” helps us figure out how to escape the situation.

How stuck are you?

Do any of the following apply to you?

• Cognitive overload, overwhelm, and burnout
• Unconscious self-limitation and self-sabotage
• Living with impostor syndrome, where you doubt your self-worth and capabilities.
• Unmanaged mental health conditions such as but not limited to depression or anxiety
• Limited vision – not recognizing and living by your “why” (Why ARE you on the path you are on? What drives you?)
• Lack of adequate support or resources both emotionally and/or physically (i.e., finances, family, community/friends)
• Perfectionism and fear of uncertainty
• Emotional conflict between your desires and what others expect from you
• Resistance to change
• Lack of a more profound sense of meaning or purpose

***These are taken from PsychCentral blog. Click here to read the full article.

The bottom line is that when we fixate on negative things, we get stuck. Period.

What are you fixating on today?

Grace and Peace,

Andrea