Stuck between two parts of yourself? Try this.
Published October 20, 2026 · By Jay Salisbury
So a lot of people come to me stuck between two or more potential paths. Part of them wants to leave the job, part of them wants to stay. Part of them wants to trust someone, part of them wants to protect themselves.
More analysis often doesn't work here, because fear will tend to get in the way and keep you on the path where your mind feels safe - it will tend to stay in the comfort zone even when that's not in your best interest.
Here's an exercise I actually have people do. Take two chairs. Sit in one and speak out loud as the side that wants to leave. Really say it, not just think it. Then feel what that path actually feels like, tune into what your body says. Then get up and sit in the other chair, and speak as the side that wants to stay. Let it answer back - again focusing on the feeling.
What you're doing here is tuning into a deeper part of yourself - your soul - and it has information that your conscious mind doesn't.
Keep switching until you have clarity. You're not running a debate where one side has to win. You're giving both paths a seat at the table they've never actually had. In my experience, people are often shocked by their innate ability to listen to their soul in this way. It stops getting shouted over by the mind's fears.
I use this exact exercise for resistance versus openness to change, doubt versus trust, wanting to lose weight versus being scared to. Same two chairs, different life challenges.
If something big comes up while you're doing this and it feels like more than you can hold on your own, that's worth bringing to someone who can support you through it, rather than sitting with it alone.
You don't necessarily need to settle the battle in the moment. Often it's enough for both sides to be felt and understood via the feeling in your own body. In my experience, that's when something real shows up, and it's rarely exactly what either chair argued for alone.
Next time you're torn, don't sit with it in your head. Get two chairs. Give both sides a turn.
