This one feels like the Mount Everest of obstacles, because when you don’t know, you don’t know…but it’s actually one of the easiest obstacles to get over, because all you need to do is find out what to do. Simple, eh? It’s not always that easy, I know that, but thanks to the internet, it’s never been easier to find out anything than it is now. Auntie Google has more information about anything you could ever ask for than you could ever read. It’s incredible, it’s wonderful, it’s magical (I grew up in the non-digital age so to me it’s still amazing).
When you don’t know what to do, remember that you are a creative being, you can figure this out. Everything is learnable, everything can be figured out. It’s just a puzzle to be solved. It’s not you being stupid, or a dipstick, or somehow defective. You don’t know what you don’t know. I didn’t know anything about websites when I started my business – now I maintain my own site, and can build a site (thanks to WordPress, this is now very easy.)
And just to reiterate that – you are a creative being. You are. All humans are (we come up with the most amazingly creative excuses for not doing stuff.) You went to school – you learned stuff there (maybe you learned how to pretend to be listening to the teacher when you were actually listening to pop music on the radio…it’s still useful knowledge). You’ve learned stuff all your life, you’ve figured it out. From how to drive to how to boil an egg to how to kiss. You didn’t know how to do any of them until you knew.
All you need to do is put your thinking cap on and start coming up with some ideas and trying them. Many people think for about half a second, then say “I don’t know”. You need to give yourself a better chance than that to mull and consider and ponder. And bring your inner wisdom in – you’ve got access to guidance right there. Use it. Ask your heart and soul for help. If you believe, ask God, angels, Goddess, guides for some guidance too.
Sometimes we genuinely have no clue where to go next and there are no ideas to be had. This is actually quite rare, so go back to putting on your thinking cap and let all your ideas be heard…even if they seem crazy. But if you’ve been mulling and pondering and considering for a while and you have no clue, find someone who’s done what you want to do and ask them.
Auntie Google, a friend, someone you vaguely know that you think might be able to help. The worst they can do is say no, and you’ll be no worse off…but they might help you get unstuck. Like magic! Other people are brilliant, you know, and they know stuff. And most people are happy to be helpful.
Auntie Google has been my trusted business colleague for years. Whenever I get stuck on a business issue, off I go to Auntie Google – where I either find a breadcrumb to help me in my search, or someone who can do it for me, or the answer I need to do it myself. It’s not always as simple as “Ask the question, immediately get the right answer”; sometimes it takes a bit of breadcrumb following, some trail following, some changing the language because “that thing that helps search engines find your site” is not quite specific enough.
Most things you want to create in your life are not 100% unique – they’ve been done by someone, somewhere, before. And if they can figure it out, so can you…which brings me to my last point: no one is born knowing it all. We all figure it out. We all get stuck and don’t know what to do. Then we find out what to do next. It really is that simple.
Always remember that you are more creative, resourceful, intuitive and intelligent than you give yourself credit for…and thanks to the internet, you have access to a whole world of information, resources and people who can guide you. So you don’t know what to do? Go find out!
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