Recently I was feeling stuck.

I couldn’t figure out why I was having such a hard time doing the things I wanted to do. I kept asking myself the same questions. Was it a lack of motivation? Did I not have enough time? Was I just being lazy?

How many times have you asked yourself something similar?

This happens to so many of us. We want to eat better, exercise more, take better care of ourselves, or follow through on something that matters. We make promises to ourselves. This time I’ll do it. Tomorrow will be different.

But somehow tomorrow comes and goes.

For me, the issue was walking my dog.

More than ten years ago we rescued Mia, an Australian Shepherd mix, from the streets of Arkansas. When we first brought her home, I couldn’t understand why our walks were so difficult. She wouldn’t go to the bathroom. She seemed afraid of everything on the street. She pulled on the leash and jumped into bushes when cars drove by.

Then it hit me. Mia was confused.

She had never been on a leash before.

Slowly, she began to understand what was happening. She started to trust the routine of going outside with me. Over time she stopped crossing the street when someone watered their lawn. She stopped jumping into bushes when cars passed. She trusted me.

Walking together became part of our rhythm.

Fast forward ten years.

Now we live in a house with a fenced yard, and Mia has two younger brothers, Basil and Bandit, to play with. Over time, I took Mia on walks less and less. I told myself almost daily that I would do better tomorrow. I would often think about how excited Mia used to get when I picked up her leash, and I’d feel a little pang of guilt.

Why was this so hard?

Eventually I realized something important.

My routine had changed.

When it was just me and Mia, our walk was the first thing we did each morning. Wake up. Grab the leash. Head outside together.

But life evolved. Basil and Bandit joined the family. Now mornings look different. They rush outside into the yard. The cats need breakfast. Coffee gets made. Dogs get fed. Before I know it, the morning has moved on.

The routine that once existed simply disappeared.

And that’s when it clicked for me.

Maybe the problem wasn’t motivation. Maybe it wasn’t laziness either.

Maybe the routine was gone.

So I asked myself a simple question:

What if I created a new one?

What if walking Mia became part of my morning again—not the old routine, but a new version that fits the life I have now?

Sometimes when we feel stuck, we assume something is wrong with us.

But often the real issue is much simpler.

The structure that once supported us quietly disappeared.

And the good news about routines?

They can always be rebuilt.

Sometimes all it takes is noticing that they’re gone—and deciding to begin again.

This is something I see often in coaching conversations. People come in feeling frustrated with themselves, wondering why they can’t seem to follow through on something that matters to them. But when we slow down and really look at what’s happening, the issue is often less about motivation and more about the structures and routines that quietly shape our days.

Sometimes the first step forward isn’t pushing harder.

Sometimes it’s simply noticing what changed—and creating a new way forward that fits the life you have now.