Oooooh, y’all, this is a JUICY episode. Because I am sharing 3 VERY COMMON phrases you may be saying that are holding you back. These phrases are literally keeping you stuck.

And maybe you’re thinking, “I don’t say anything that’s keeping me stuck.” BUT you may be super surprised at the 3 phrases that I’m going to mention. Because I literally hear these phrases every single day of my life–and that’s not an exaggeration. These phrases are SO COMMON that you may not even realize that they are keeping you stuck.

And I’m going to go ahead and say–I do my very best NOT to say these phrases, but it’s still a challenge sometimes these phrases are so normal in our society. BUT because I now have a lot more awareness around it, I now know how to catch myself and to reframe.

So, all of that to say, I want to encourage you NOT to shame yourself if you do say these phrases, or if you ever catch yourself saying them in the future. Instead, I just want to invite you to catch yourself, get curious as to why you’re saying it, and then reframe.

Without further ado, let’s dive on in.

The very first phrase that I truly believe is keeping you stuck is…

“I don’t know.”

Like I said, I have been so guilty of saying this myself but I’ve become acutely aware of when I do say it, and I always go back and reframe.

Now, you may be wondering why this phrase is keeping you stuck.

I am constantly seeing women say that they “don’t know” what their next step is, or what it should be, and then they keep themselves in this continuous loop of indecision. And then before long, they get even more confused and more afraid to make any sort of decision because they’ve stayed stuck for so long.

I actually talk about this a lot in episode 2 of this show. So, if you haven’t listened to that one, I highly recommend tuning into that episode after this one.

But to make a long story short, from my experience and from what I’ve seen in clients and friends, most of the time, we DO know. We DO know that next step. We DO have an answer. We’re just too afraid to make that choice, and take that next step.

Sure, you may not have EVERY step mapped out for you. You may not know EVERY step ahead of you. But I want to challenge you, and invite you to recognize that you probably already know the NEXT step. You may just not know ALL the steps, and that makes you nervous.

So, saying, “I don’t know,” is almost like a comforting mechanism. It is literally you giving yourself permission to stay in a place of indecision.

Indecision is keeping you stuck.

And you and I both know that it is NOT fun when you’re stuck due to indecision.

So, instead, I want to invite you to stop saying I don’t know. And ask yourself, “What if I did know?” Or, “What if I HAD to make a decision right now, with no looking back?” If Jesus was looking you in the eyes right now and said you had to make a decision, what would you say?

Give yourself 10 seconds max, and then make the call.

I’m not saying things won’t change after you make a decision. Because truthfully, action brings clarity. Which means making a decision will also bring clarity, even if it’s the “wrong” decision. Because you can always go back and shift, but you won’t know what needs to shift unless you make a call–unless you make a decision and take action on that decision.

As a recap, please please please try to take the phrase “I don’t know” out of your vocabulary. 

Don’t feel shame when you do say it, and instead, get curious as to why that’s coming up, and then lean into the Holy Spirit and let Him guide you in that decision. Because He already knows.

And if He already knows, then I would bet that He has probably given you that next step. You’re just ignoring it, not taking it, nervous, or afraid, or feel like you need more steps than just that next step. But trust Him.

He knows, and so do you.

The second phrase you may be saying daily that could be keeping you stuck is…

“I should”

Here are some examples:

“I should get back into working out.”

“I should be farther along in my business than I am.”

A lot of the time, we use the phrase, “I should,” to put ourselves down. When you say, “I should get back into working out,” that subconsciously makes you feel shameful or guilty for not already doing the thing you think you should be doing.

And what happens when you feel shameful or guilty?

A lot of the time you wind up right back where you started.

Not doing the thing you think you should be doing.

Or holding yourself back in your business, or whatever it is you’re thinking about right now.

Instead of saying, “I should,” I want to invite you to reframe whatever it is you’re saying “I should” about with something like this…

Instead of saying, “I should get back into working out,” you can say, “I am putting a workout in my schedule for tomorrow.”

Instead of saying, “”I should be farther along in my business than I am,” you can say, “I have grown so much in my business in the last year. I am actively learning how to be the leader the Lord is calling me to be.”

This leads me to the last phrase that I believe may be keeping you stuck…

“I will get back to ____ once I get through this busy/hard season …”

For example:

“I will get back to working out once I get through this crazy season at work.”

“I will get back to my daily Scripture reading when I finish the month out strong in my network marketing company.”

Now, just like with the other phrases, this is a phrase I still have to catch myself from saying, and I KNOW this phrase has hindered me so much in the past, and I don’t want that for you.

This phrase can instill shame and guilt like the previous phrase, but truthfully, this phrase can actually REVEAL to you the things that are going to be most beneficial for you in the season you’re in.

As humans, we will subconsciously try to find a way to self-sabotage ourselves, and so often, the thing that falls off the wagon during our busy or stressful seasons is usually the thing that is going to help you most in that season.

For example, If I say the phrase, “I will get back to working out once I get through this crazy season at work,” this reveals to me that working out would actually be super beneficial for me to relieve some stress during the crazy season at work.

And by me saying this phrase, I’m actually making things harder on myself because I’m not doing the thing that would help me, AND I’m giving myself permission to basically stay stuck.

When you say this phrase, it’s like you’re literally saying, “I’m just going to stay stuck a little longer.” And I know you don’t want that.

So, instead, I want to invite you to say, “In the past, I would feel like I didn’t have time for this, but I know this is what I need. Where in my schedule can I make this fit? What adjustments do I need to make in order to make this a priority?”

And that’s it, friends! Those are the 3 phrases you may be saying daily that are keeping you stuck.

As a recap, the phrases are:

1. “I don’t know”
2. “I should”
3. “I will get back to ____ once I get through this busy/hard season …”

Next Steps

Now that you know the 3 phrases you say daily that are keeping you stuck, it’s time to take intentional, aligned action towards building your business.

This is exactly why I created Faith-Fueled Coach Academy–to help women like you finally go full-time online in their coaching business with the Holy Spirit leading us both. If you are ready to start and/or scale your faith-fueled coaching business, head on over to www.hannahbrindley.com/fca to learn more about the program, and get on the waitlist for when we launch again.

And of course, if you have any questions about the program, or just want to talk things over, please don’t hesitate to reach out to me over on Instagram @hannahbrindley or via email at hannah@hannahbrindley.com.

If you are curious on how I coach, I highly recommend checking my FREE Attract Your Queendom training. This training takes an immersive approach to attracting your ideal client to you, so you can then create content that attracts clients to you efficiently and effectively. I’ve had multiple people tell me this training alone has changed the game for them! If you go through it, please send me a DM over on Instagram (@hannahbrindley) and let me know your thoughts!