The first quarter of 2018 is over, which means it’s time to review your progress. Are you fulfilling your New Year’s resolutions or did you ditch them already? Is it looking likely you won’t accomplish anything noteworthy for another year?

You see, this is something that happens every year. On the first day, everyone is excited and looking forward to what they can achieve. Then, slowly by slowly, the wheels on the train start coming off. You are stuck and right back in your usual pattern of going through the motions.

Luckily, there’s a way you can unstick your life. Keep reading to find out what the problem is and what you can do to fix it.

Reasons Why People Get Stuck in Life

Only about nine percent of people feel they achieved their resolutions. This goes to show how much people either veer off course or get stuck in their current life path.

Unfortunately, a side effect of this is it leads to stress, discontent, and sadness. It may make you feel like a failure. And if it was something really important you needed to do, your self-esteem and respect may take a big hit.

There are a couple of reasons why people get stuck in life. These include vague goals, procrastinating, poor attitude, and taking on too many projects. You may also be managing your time poorly or letting others discourage you from your goals.

All these reasons serve to create the perception you did nothing all year. Yet, sometimes, people end up accomplishing other things they didn’t plan for. Even so, failure to follow through on your stated goals means you ended up away from your life path.

As John Robert Wooden, multiple NCAA championship title-winning coach, once said, “Don’t mistake activity with achievement.”

Steps to Get Your Life and Goals Moving Forward

Since time won’t stop anytime soon, it’s up to us to get our lives and goals moving forward. Otherwise, we’ll get to old age, look back, and realize the great opportunities we wasted.

Here are some steps to help you unstick your life and start achieving your goals:

1. Find Your Purpose

Many people struggle with the idea of finding their purpose. What they don’t realize is they don’t need to sit around brainstorming to find it. That’s why some have ended up with a written purpose that doesn’t match their true nature.

Try this instead; Go out and take action in many of the things you love doing. You’ll find there’s one thing sticking out to you. It will be something you’d be happy to do even if you didn’t get paid (though everyone needs to get paid to survive).

Your purpose will be something inspiring. It will get you out of bed very early. It will leave you longing for each new morning to arrive faster because you have unfinished work.

2. Deal With Burnout

One reason for the lack of progress in work, relationships, and life is burnout. It lurks within you crippling your desire to get anything done. It stifles your creativity, reduces your enthusiasm, and makes you feel tired all the time.

The problem is people don’t realize they are burned out until it’s too late. Their work suffers, their relationships strain, and their goals become a distant memory. They are just going through the motions.

We are meant to enjoy life despite its ups and downs. To do this, though, you need to take good care of your body. Thus, take a break once in a while to rejuvenate. Eat well, practice a healthy lifestyle, and get a balance between work and play.

3. Make Actionable Plans

A key element missing from most resolutions is the “How”. While people write what they want to achieve and why, they forget to write how they’ll get it done. As such, they end up stuck because they don’t know what the best approach is.

Instead, write down actionable plans. Do you want to lose weight? Fine, why do you want to lose it? Okay, how do you plan to lose it? Will you run, eat better diets, wear slimming clothes, or work out at the gym? How many times do you plan to do these things? How will you track your progress or measure your results?

This process is crucial to getting you moving forward. Your brain will be asking what the next step is and generating an answer. This will give you momentum to achieve things in other areas as well.

4. Manage Your Time Better

Time management is another Achilles heel of most underachievers. It seems like the day always ends before you’ve done anything of note. Yet, during the day, you were the busiest person alive.

How does this happen?

Well, it goes back to the nature of your goals. They are only a statement on a piece of paper. They are not actionable. As such, you go through the day like a ship without a sail. You are going where the wind blows.

Many overachievers give a simple solution to this issue. They urge people to choose three things to achieve that day and work on those. This gives you a target you can hone in on throughout the day. You won’t be swayed by the usual distractions such as social media or chatty co-workers.

You should have a detailed system for achieving those three goals. Outline the needed actions and achieve them one-by-one.

5. Never Give Up

Another obstacle to fulfilling your goals is giving up when the pressures of life hit you hard. Your boss could be the one hindering your progress. Or, it could be forces beyond your control.

This is where many people stop. They lift up their hands and say, “I tried”. That’s the wrong attitude. You must want to achieve your goal at all costs. The only way to want it that badly is by understanding why the goal is important to you.

Make a plan of action with your “why” in mind. Find solutions for every obstruction. Can you talk to someone else? Is there a different approach?

Start small and build momentum. Every small goal you achieve will lead you to the big one. And if obstacles and people put you down, never give up!!!

6. Get an Accountability Partner

It’s easier to achieve your goals when you have someone backing you up. Whether it’s in the gym or on any other issue in life, you need an accountability partner. This should be someone who cares for you and wants to see you succeed.

If that’s not possible, hire a personal life coach. They can help remind you what you are working toward. They’ll also light a fire inside you when you start procrastinating. As you continue doing things you don’t like, you’ll discover you are moving closer to your goals every day.

Begin Moving Your Life Forward Again

Applying the steps above will help you start moving your life forward again. Get clear on your goals, make them actionable, and start doing a bit at a time. Stop procrastinating and choose what you’ll accomplish each day.

Within no time, you’ll find your resolutions and any other goals are almost complete. Unstick your life and achieve your dreams.

“Successful men and women keep moving. They make mistakes, but they don’t quit.” – Conrad Hilton