How did you overcome your plateau(s)?


I plateaued for a while at 1800-1950. I felt quite frustrated about not being able to break 2000. After I decided to look at the open challenges and play against much higher rated players, my rating went up, and today I got to 2007. I think this was because when I defeated these higher rated players it gave me a morale boost, and when I lost It didn't affect me so heavily.
For players who have experienced one or multiple "plateaus" (which I am defining as a period of time where despite practicing and playing, your rating and skill level seem to not increase), talk about the experience a bit.
What level was your plateau? In hindsight, what do you see as the reason for the plateau? What do you feel you did that contributed to getting past the plateau? What was your mindset like during the plateau? How did your mindset change after getting past the plateau? Etc...
This isn't necessarily advice! Tell your story!