Life can be f*cking hard!
Did I really just say that?
Yes! So many people I talk to are tightlipped and straight-faced, nodding their head saying “not bad mate”, when what they really wanna say is “holy shit, what the hell is going on!”
How are you coping right now? I mean honestly…
Last year I wrote about how life can sometimes be f*cking hard. It’s not always roses and ice cream. And now we have this financial / health / community lockdown crisis.
Let’s get real for a minute.
Everyone has challenges, everyone has goals and if you are not finding life really hard at the moment, then congratulations. Take stock for a moment and be grateful for everything you have in your life. Stop, write down everything that you’re grateful for and then help someone else. Teach them how you did what you did.
Or, maybe you’re not stretching yourself enough. Maybe now is the time to pivot and evolve, but you just don’t know now.
Maybe you are content to be in your comfort zone. For 95% of the population, that’s enough.
“you can’t read the label from inside the jar.”
However, if you are finding life challenging right now, it’s OK. Hang in there, it will get better. Just make sure you’re talking to someone and getting it out of your system and getting a second perspective. I keep going back to something that Blair Enns said when he was in Adelaide in 2012 —“you can’t read the label from inside the jar.”
Even Einstein said it— “you can’t solve a problem with the same thinking that created the problem”.
Yes, this is #stressful and #anxious time for many people because of business, wages, delayed payments from clients, isolation, confinement, lack of regular exercise and family stress. The list goes on!
Get some help if you need to navigate this unprecented time and consider introducing healthy, balanced #rituals into your daily routine. Don’t turn to the things which are temporary solutions. You’re better than that!
And about that four letter word in the title—here’s what one of mentors Robert Riopel said once—if you let a four letter word take you out, then what else are you letting take you out?
Let’s go into winter and hopefully the end of this crisis with an attitude of #gratitude. Grateful for what we have, and willing to #support those around us to get what they need.
Here’s four simple strategies which are use to get through the downs and celebrate the ups:
- Recognise what you already have and be grateful for it by writing down 10 things that you are grateful for every single morning
- Gather your thoughts and spend five minutes practicing mindfulness every morning. It doesn’t have to be in some painful yoga pose, you just need to sit and focus on yourself five minutes. Observe your thoughts and write them down if you have to, but use a timer to ensure that you are focusing for five whole minutes. You’ll be surprised how slow five minutes goes when you’re trying to focus on your present self
- Regular exercise is the key to burning unspent energy, lowering anxiety, releasing endorphins and starting the day with a great, positive attitude. There is no excuse for not finding seven minutes to do a quick workout. You don’t need a gym. You just need to get on the floor and do some resistance exercises for seven minutes. Google Mack Newton’s seven minute workout if you need some ideas.
- Talk to somebody about what’s going on in your head before it gets too far from the truth and your perspective of reality becomes warped—remember, your perspective is your reality.
Please share this with that friend or partner that needs to hear this right now.
Be kind, be gentle (especially to yourself) and be amazing!
Dan.
image by @jdubs on unsplash.com