Why do we feel stuck in life?

Have you ever felt like life is moving… but you’re not? Like you’re doing everything right — working hard, achieving goals — yet something inside feels stuck?

That feeling of being stuck is not failure. It’s actually a signal.

It’s life’s gentle way of saying: “You’ve outgrown this layer of yourself.”

Today, I want to share why we feel stuck — and how this is not a problem to fix, but a call to rise.

Let’s start with something we’ve all studied at some point — A human's hierarchy of needs.

Maslow said that as humans, we move through different levels of motivation:

First, we seek food and safety.

Then belonging and love.

Then esteem — the desire to achieve, to be seen, to make something of ourselves.

And at the top, he placed self- discovery or actualization — becoming the best version of who we truly are.

But here’s what most people miss…

Even self-actualization isn’t the end of the journey. Beyond it lies something deeper — Self-Realization.

The realization that we are not the limited self we’re trying to perfect… but the consciousness that observes it all.

Hierarchy of needs

So why do we feel stuck?

Because we keep trying to find fulfillment in a level we’ve already transcended.

We chase career success when our soul is asking for truth. We chase approval when our heart is asking for peace. We chase comfort when consciousness is calling for growth.

Stagnation is what happens when our actions no longer align with our current level of awareness.

Life is always inviting us to move upward — from survival… to expression… to realization.

But we resist, because movement means letting go of who we think we are, letting go off our so called comfort level.

Think about it — a caterpillar doesn’t know the butterfly is waiting right within him.

When we feel stuck, we are usually in that cocoon phase — comfortable but unsure, impatient. But that pressure, that stillness, is the preparation for transformation.

And the goal is not to fix the cocoon… but to emerge.

This is why the great masters emphasized self-realization — not as an escape from life, but as the completion of it.

Until we know who we truly are, every achievement feels temporary. Every joy, fragile. Every success, incomplete.

So don’t just walk toward your highest self — sprint toward it.

Sprint not in haste, but in devotion. Sprint not to escape where you are, but to embrace who you are becoming.

Because when we awaken to our true nature — when we realize we are not this limited body, not this fleeting identity —the feeling of being stuck simply dissolves.

We see that life was never holding us back. It was simply waiting…for us to wake up.

If this message resonates with you, take a moment today to sit in stillness — and ask, “What part of me is ready to grow beyond where I am right now?”

The answer might just set you free.

P.S. - If you liked this post you might like my book too - "Let's be a part-time yogi".