I recently read a quip I have never seen before that said, “When nothing goes right, go left.” I’m not sure why that sort of caught me by surprise, but it reflects something I believe pretty strongly: sometimes when we’re in a rut or things are not going our way for a while, doing something different can seem to break that negative cycle, or trying something new, and there are sort of two underlying reasons why I think that’s so effective.
Number one, it gives us a chance to break out of the rut by doing something different; it kind of gets us out of the state that we were in.
Second, it gives us a sense of control over what we’re doing, and in life, separating out what we can control from what we can’t often gives us traction to move ahead. If you’re feeling like you’re potentially stuck in something right now, consider doing something different to try to change the situation and also to give yourself a greater sense of control. Chances are it’ll give you the step you need to start moving in the right direction.