Stuck on an Escalator

Renowned author and speaker Seth Godin discusses a stuck escalator, relating it to how many view life. He paints a picture of individuals moving up an escalator when it abruptly stops. Instead of continuing on with a technique usually reserved for stairs, and simply walking up the frozen steps, the “passengers” begin to get unruly and impatient, calling out for help and yelling in frustration.

As silly as this picture is, it does a great job of capturing the essence of our society as a whole. Rather than taking responsibility on ourselves and doing what is necessary to move forward, we are often paralyzed by entitlement, helplessly waiting for someone else to come rescue us and solve our problems. Furthermore, we tend to look for others to blame instead of accepting the fact that sometimes the responsibility to continue forward rests on us, even if it’s not our fault the escalator broke down. We spend our energy condemning outside forces – the manufacturer of the moving stairs, the maintenance personnel or even the many travelers before us that stressed the motor – instead of simply doing what is in our power to resolve the situation.

It may not be your fault your “escalator” stopped working, but are you waiting for someone else to come along and solve the problem? After all, you didn’t cause the problem in the first place, right? Do you wait helplessly to be rescued because someone else created the scenario you are trapped in? Or do you look for the opportunities to step forward, regardless of fault or blame, and take the necessary action to rise above the issue? Don’t let fault and blame steal your power and ability to overcome. Never allow yourself to be stuck on an escalator.

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