By Joan Courtney, C.Ht., Unstuck Living

Ever faced a big decision? I lived in another small town years ago and was working two jobs for some extra cash. I had an MGB sports car and loved zooming about. Being two to two and a half feet off the ground, I felt as if I was really flying as I traveled.

I also learned a lot about mechanical maintenance from owning this little car. Even down to magically keeping it running. (An art rather than a science, with an MGB.) I even knew when something was awry by the sound of the engine. So, when I headed for the second job after finishing the first, everything seemed in good order.

Rain was coming down in torrents and had inundated certain parts of the town. I was crossing a flooded intersection when snap! The steering cable broke, and I was literally dead in the water. Which was up to the floorboards. And rising. Traffic was backed up. And there I was, midway through the intersection.

Choice points

I quickly realized I had three ways to go:

• Wait for AAA to come pull me out. But getting a tow truck through the snarl of homeward-bound traffic would be impossible.

• Look pitiful until some kind motorist came to rescue me. Not really an option, for the rain was coming down in sheets, overflowing the curbs. No one wanted to get wet.

• Be proactive. Hop out and push the roadster to the curb myself.

The third option was the right choice. Knee-deep in water and immediately drenched when I got out, I pushed my beloved two-seater to the side of the road. Traffic flowed, and all was well. Except…

I had no way to get to that second job. I couldn’t afford to lose it, for my fragile budget needed that extra monetary boost. And I wasn’t presentable anyway; my hair was plastered to my head, and I was soaked to the skin.

I slogged over to the payphone (yes; it was that long ago) and called my boss to explain the situation. She laughed and asked where I was, saying it sounded like I was under a waterfall. End result? She didn’t fire me but moved me to another nicer department. Win-win!

The moral of the story

Faced challenges like this where you’re stuck and none of the choices feel right? Here are a few tips to loosen the grip of indecision:

• Slow down if you have the option. Like a snow globe, your mind needs time to settle and clear. Realize it’s not an emergency (unless you too are stuck in the middle of a flooded intersection)

• Make a list of pros and cons. Have your options in a tangible form in front of you. Visibility is important, for your thoughts can be tangled, messy, and emotionally loaded.

• Picture your resistance. Often mine is a little bucky donkey in my mind, all four feet firmly planted. Is yours a clenched fist in your gut? Tummy riled up?

• Shift that perception. Given the image, figure out what the best course of action is to change it. Offer the donkey a carrot? Extend a hand?

• Move. Time to walk. Make that choice. Live unstuck.

Having over 35 years of experience, Joan Courtney, C.Ht. is a clinical hypnotherapist and NLP practitioner. Writing for Outdoors Southwest and other publications on the Mountain, she also ghostwrites bi-weekly posts for Lil’ Toot, the Canine Executive Officer of Unstuck Living.