Every so often we all get in a rut and feel uninspired.  It can come out of nowhere and be caused by burnout, a major disappointment or even a recent success.  You wake up and you just don’t feel excited about anything you are working on or working towards.  It can be a scary, unsettling feeling for someone who is usually on-fire and energetic about anything and everything.

So what do you do when you feel uninspired?  I recently went through a major disappointment with a business partnership I had been working on for over a year that in the end, fell apart.  On one hand, coming to the decision to separate from something that clearly wasn’t working was a huge relief and very freeing.  But then in the aftermath, it left me feeling uninspired about what is next.   Rather than fight it I thought I would use this as an interesting learning experience.  So I embraced being uninspired for a couple weeks.  Needless to say once you embrace something it kinda goes away.

Here are some things that worked for me and helped me break out of my rut:

Put yourself in a new, different environment.  I was lucky enough to be in Manhattan for two weeks as I was in the final stages of making this big decision.  It’s amazing what different scenery can do for your outlook.  I relied on the energy of the city as my inspiration and it didn’t disappoint.  Working at a desk, or in this case a very comfortable couch, with a view of NYC gave me a “big picture perspective” and helped me realize that what I was dealing with wasn’t a big deal.  I ventured out on walks in the afternoon and explored different neighborhoods and noticed all the different businesses thriving.  I interacted with all kinds of people which was very interesting.  You don’t have to go to another city to benefit from this.  Go to a hotel on the beach or downtown and act like you are on a business trip.  Find a cool cafe.  Just change up your normal working environment and see what opens up.

Give yourself some space.  I am so used to being super scheduled out.  Every moment of my day has an action item next to to it.  This works for me and I thrive in a structured environment.  It drives my husband crazy that I even have to have an agenda for our vacations.  Sometimes what’s next to the time is chill out/do nothing.  But I schedule it and then I look forward to it.  As I was going through this “uninspired time” I just didn’t want to have a schedule.  I wanted some space, some breathing room.  So I took it.  And I didn’t beat myself up if I wasn’t being productive which is very hard for me.  I made a conscious effort to take deep cleansing breaths throughout the day.  I let myself wake up naturally.  I went to bed when I was tired.   Good sleep is an amazing healer of all things and sometimes we get uninspired because we are just exhausted.

Talk about it.  I’m not good at sharing about what’s not working in my life yet when I do it is usually the best medicine and much better than trying to do it in your head.  Authentically sharing with another human being is one of the most powerful tools we have yet it is often one of the most overlooked.   Now I’m not talking about complaining, whining and just being negative.  Ain’t nobody got time for that.  I am talking about sharing the experience with people who can help you distinguish what happened, take responsibility and learn from it so you can move on.  I’m blessed that I have such incredible friends and colleagues around me who want to listen to me and support me

Get back to work.  Take some uninterrupted planning time and get your ass back in the saddle.  Revisit or in some cases recreate your vision and plan and start implementing it.  Reconnect with your passions and the things you enjoy most and then create some actions you can begin implementing immediately.  Action is what moves the world so start moving.  I couldn’t be more excited about my business and what I’m working on right now.  My “rut” seems like a distant memory but one I know I needed to have to be where I’m at now and for that I am grateful.