Hi ,

You may know that as a result of a botched knee replacement on my right leg about 8 years ago I have trouble with constant leg pain and with mobility. I know that changing my energy and my mental frame can drastically change things, but for a few years now I've gotten more and more discouraged as the leg has continued to deteriorate.

Discouragement is a sneaky little devil of a thing. It works on you in subtle and not-so-subtle ways, and before you know it you are not only discouraged but angry and depressed over the whole mess. To be honest that's how I've been over my leg for a while now.

Here's the deal with tough situations. They get one stuck into a particular frame of mind, and the longer one stays in that frame of mind the more intractable the situation gets.

This is where self-leadership comes knocking at one's door. Self-discipline is right behind it. If you have these well developed in yourself they will nag at you, pointing out that mental frames of mind are plastic and can be changed.

So to make a long story short, I've been telling myself that I have to go hold onto a treadmill and walk, even if it is 5 minutes. Been telling myself that since right before covid started, and then of course the gyms were closed for a long time. Here in Florida they eventually reopened but it was not a great idea for me to go. So months have gone by. In fact, an entire freakin' year has gone by!

But now, finally, Bill and I are both fully vaccinated and have waited the requisite two weeks, and it is time for me to work myself out of my discouraged, angry, depressed leg deal. So, mask in hand, and with Bill ready to help me get off and on the treadmill, off we went.

I was scared, embarrassed, and afraid that my pain level would escalate. But those are, in the end, nothing but excuses. I set a goal of walking for 3 minutes, and maybe 5 as a stretch goal, no matter how slowly I had to go on the treadmill. No matter how much the neighborhood jocks stared at me struggling to get up onto the treadmill. Literally, I had to force myself to go.

I think that's what happens when we are good and stuck in business. We sort of know the way out, but we are loathe to do what we know we need to do because it is uncomfortable, embarrassing, maybe even shocking. We are afraid of how it will look. We don't like getting out of our comfort zone even if the "zone" is keeping us discouraged, angry, depressed, or broke.

Where you are, though, is worse than what you have to do. Because where you are is a dead end and what you have to do generates a different framework and a different energy. Even if it's tiny, it's a movement out of the mud. If we are mature, responsible human beings we will love and lead ourselves toward freedom from the much.

Here are the key steps.

• Admit the stuck place to yourself. Admit all the feelings that go along with the stuck place.
• Admit to yourself what excuses you've been using to keep yourself in the "known is better than unknown" stuck place.
• Use your wonderful brain and heart to figure out one or two options.
• Use your maturity and self-leadership to go do the option you like best, even if you feel like it's stupid, too little too late, embarrassing, and maybe even shocking.

I want you to know that whatever you are facing, I believe in you. I believe that you can do that one small thing. One step out of the mud. And I believe that you can do that one step again and again, and that the energy in you and around you will shift over time.

These challenges that come our way have more to do with how we meet them than to do with the challenge itself. We have far more power than we give ourselves credit for. Far more.

Admit feelings, admit excuses, find one option, go do that one option - even if, like me, you're aiming for 5 minutes. Then see how you've changed your frame and your energy. Works every time.

To your sweet success,

Sue Painter

PS Blogging is not dead. If you are looking for a good basic "get your blog going" e-course take a look at Suzi Whitford's Blog by Number E-book. She's super-organized and clear about what you need to be doing. (That's my own affiliate link.)