The Hero’s Journey: How Every Story is the Same and Why We Get Stuck in the Cycle

At the core of every great story, whether it’s an epic myth, a beloved novel, or even the struggles in our daily lives, there’s a universal pattern: threat → motion → ease. This cycle isn’t just the foundation of fictional tales; it’s the rhythm of life itself.

When we break down the hero’s journey—that age-old storytelling arc that spans cultures, eras, and genres—it always comes back to this simple yet profound sequence. The hero starts in ease, an ordinary world of comfort. But then comes threat, the challenge, the disruption. This is where the motion begins to be stalled. The hero hesitates, doubts, and faces internal and external forces that try to prevent progress. It’s not until they confront those villains—often represented by comfort, shame, and distraction—that they can move through the motion phase, eventually returning to ease—but in a transformed state.

Stalling Motion: The Heart of Every Story

So, why is it that all stories, from the tiniest cell in your body to the greatest myths ever told, follow this same arc? The answer lies in one simple fact: motion is stalled in every story.

Think about it. If the protagonist moved immediately into action without hesitation, there would be no story. If Frodo had instantly taken the One Ring to Mount Doom, if Hamlet had immediately avenged his father, if Arjuna had jumped into battle without second-guessing himself—there would be no story to tell. Motion has to be stalled by the tension of the threat, the uncertainty, and the resistance to change. It’s the delay that creates the drama, the conflict, and the eventual transformation. When we get stuck in our own lives, it's because our motion is stalled, preventing us from moving forward and breaking through to the other side.

The Three Villains of Stalled Motion

In every great story, the protagonist’s movement forward is blocked by three key villains: comfort, shame, and distraction.

Comfort: This villain keeps us rooted in the familiar, in the comfort zone. It tells us that staying where we are is safer than stepping into the unknown. In every story, this is the character’s reluctance to leave behind what they know. Whether it’s Bilbo Baggins in The Hobbit, or Simba in The Lion King, they each experience that temptation to stay in their own comfortable world.

Shame: The second villain is shame. It whispers to us that we aren’t worthy of the change or the journey ahead. In the case of Arjuna, shame manifests as his moral dilemma. He doesn’t want to fight his own kin because he feels it will dishonor him. In our own lives, shame tells us that we’re not ready to take on the challenge, that we don’t have what it takes, or that we’ll fail if we try.

Distraction: And then there’s distraction, the villain that keeps us occupied and focused on anything else other than the important tasks we need to face. Think of the Sirens in The Odyssey, drawing Odysseus away from his goal. Today, distractions come in the form of endless to-do lists, social media scrolling, or the internal chatter that pulls us away from what truly matters.

When these three forces combine—comfort, shame, and distraction—we get stuck in a loop, and our motion is stalled. In the story, the hero must confront and overcome these villains in order to move forward.

The Neurobiology Behind It All

But here’s the key: this isn’t just a narrative pattern—it’s biological. Every human being, at their core, is wired for this cycle. Our brains, especially the left hemisphere, are constantly trying to interpret and make sense of our experiences. But when there’s unresolved tension in the body—whether from fear, anxiety, or discomfort—the brain creates stories to explain it. These stories are often rooted in false perceptions or exaggerated fears, like "I’m not good enough" (shame), "I can’t handle this" (comfort), or "I’ll just do it later" (distraction).

Our nervous system is constantly scanning for threats, and when it senses danger—whether real or perceived—it triggers the fight-or-flight response. But when we don't address that threat (motion), the tension lingers in the body, and the left brain’s narrative-making goes into overdrive, creating stories that reinforce the fear, the shame, or the distraction.

The Cycle of Threat → Motion → Ease

So, why do we get stuck in threat? Because we don’t move through the discomfort. We don’t face the villains head-on, and instead, we get caught in the illusion of the threat. We start to overthink, procrastinate, and let the tension build until it takes on a life of its own. The threat becomes bigger in our minds because we avoid the motion that would lead to release and transformation.

But once we face the discomfort—once we step into the motion, even with fear and uncertainty—we release that tension and return to ease. And this ease isn’t the same as before—it’s a new ease, born from the growth and transformation that came through the struggle.

All Stories Are the Same Story

What we fail to realize is that your myth is all of life’s myth. The heroes of great stories are not so different from you. Just like every epic narrative, your story is about threat, motion, and ease. Whether it’s a cell growing and dividing, an animal running from danger, or a human confronting fear, the motion is always stalled by internal villains. The key to transformation lies in moving past these villains—in recognizing the neurobiological process and confronting the discomfort.

Every story—from the ancient epics to your own life—is about motion being obstructed. The tension exists not because we face external threats, but because we fail to move through them. When we move, we transform. And the stories that resonate most deeply are the ones where the hero faces these internal struggles, confronts their villains, and finally steps into the motion that leads them to ease.

So, the next time you feel stuck, recognize that the motion is the key. The threat is real, but the story isn’t over until you decide to move through it