You were just coming off an amazing period of progress in your personal life and career. Things couldn’t have been better. You achieved more in the last three years than ever before. So many were proud of you. Being on a roll never felt so good. And then it hit! All of a sudden, seemingly out of nowhere…BAM!!!
Things came to a grinding, screeching halt! It’s as if all the gold that was flowing from the waterfall of abundance and success, suddenly got cut off.
Seems as if the things you were really counting on happening in your life don’t even seem close to seeing the light of day now. The situation in the world has worsened. Just getting out of bed to face the day is something you’d rather turn a cold shoulder to and stay securely under the covers for the rest of the day. Or even better, how about the rest of the week or maybe even the rest of the month? Heck, why not throw the rest of the year in for good measure! How could things have gone so well for so long and then become so bad?
Every one of us experiences great highs only to be thrown against the wall of seeming negativity from time to time. We’re only human and riding the roller coaster that is life takes us to incredible highs and then, at a moment’s notice, drags us through some horrific and incredible lows.
It doesn’t help that the world has changed drastically. We are so conditioned to react to what appears to be going on outside of ourselves. Doing so for a prolonged period of time disconnects us from what’s going on inside of ourselves. We’re only human but the key is to choose not to stay with the doom and gloom scenario for too long.
As a society, we aren’t taught to go within and connect with our strength and resilience. It’s all too easy to stay on the surface and become the news of the day.
The key is to not let outer setbacks in the world at large become inner setbacks. There’s a difference but it’s up to you to create a healthy boundary so you don’t become the angst of the world to the point where functioning becomes a huge task.
So how do we handle things when storm clouds appear out of nowhere and threaten to totally rain on our parade?
1) Always be aware that stuff happens. That’s a part of life! The road is never a straight shot from “A” to “Z”. The reality is that it twists and turns along its way.
2) Don’t choose to attach yourself to the emotion of what’s happening around you. If you don’t attach yourself to outer issues that are mass related, they move on a lot faster. Stuff needs to move through you. Don’t let negative and fearful energy get stuck inside of you. Believe it or not, you have a choice. You have been given more power than you realize.
3) Understand that times get dark and foreboding every so often. Know that behind every cloud lies a beautiful bright blue sun-filled sky
4) Realize that things happen for a reason, just don’t tell your ego! Our mind-bodies love to draw things out and bathe in the thick soup of temporary issues that might appear to be negative. Did you notice the word “temporary”?
5) Life on earth ain’t perfect. Never has been but hopefully will be so much better soon. All you have to do is hang on and be patient. Take the ups with the downs and keep moving forward. See your “Z” from where you are standing at “A”. Know at the deepest level of your being that you’ll get there, no matter what your mind-chatter says. Feel as if you’ve already crossed the finish line before the race has begun. You can do this. You’ve done it before and there’s no reason why you can’t do it again. The choice is always yours. Make it. Once you do you’ll find it so much easier than you originally thought
Consider the following; Could it be that what appears to be a negative issue or occurrence in your life is not permanent? It probably feels like the clouds will never clear but think and visualize ahead a number of months. Where will you be then? Do you still see the issue as being prevalent? What I’m getting at here is that there isn’t much that can be done when bad things seem to happen to good people such as yourself. Acknowledge that it happened and then muster all the energy, will and positive determination you have so that you can move on. Getting out of ruts can only be accomplished by taking small steps forward.
On the road of life, there will always be bumps along the way. It’s how we chose to react and deal with those bumps that make all the difference. Some bumps will be major and rattle you to your core, others will be minor and brief disturbances. The important thing to remember is that no matter what the issue may be, you WILL get through it.
Raging storms never last forever. They eventually blow over and the sun shines once again. Are you the dark and threatening storm or might you be the unmistakable radiance of the clear sunshine-filled blue sky?
The answer can be found deep within you. You always know what the answer to that question is. You just forget from time to time.
Setbacks will make themselves known to you. Don’t make anything more of them than what they truly are, an opportunity to prove to yourself that you are made of much greater stuff. Setbacks are not the solid walls they often appear to be. I’ve got a secret for you. Those walls are actually transparent. They only look solid and impenetrable. It’s all in how you choose to see it and even more important, it’s all in how you deal with it.
The choice is yours, always.
In my 15 year speaking career, I have been fortunate to deliver over 3,200 Keynote and Seminar Experiences in over 20 countries and have published five books. I am also a results-oriented Certified Life Coach that works with individuals and businesses to help facilitate positive experiences and productive change.
My mission? To help people remember what they think they’ve forgotten…that they have the will, intent and power to create the life they want, in and out of the office. All they have to do is do it. I provide them with the tools to get there in an energetic, fun and interactive way that is totally unique and slightly out-of-the-box.
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