How To Get Through A Bad Day
Have you ever had something happen during your day that totally ruins everything? Even minor annoyances can derail and otherwise “good” afternoon.
Sometimes out minds can trick us into thinkings: ok this happened, now it’s a bad day.
Use this formula to help you move through difficult, annoying, or stressful situations.
Acknowledge the feeling and accept it.
Recognize that you are feeling that was for a reason. Don’t push it away or punish yourself.
Reach out.
Contact someone that will let you vent or will problem solve with you. If you tend to be a big ruminator, limit this stage to about 10-15 minutes. You can always come back to this later if you need it.
Take care of the problem.
Is there a solution to this problem? Great, fix it. If there isn’t, you won’t solve it by continuing to dwell on it.
Go for gratitude.
Did anything else positive happen today? Is there anything that helped you with this situation? You can even be grateful you’re having this problem in the first place (like if you have the privilege of having a car that breaks down or an iPhone that breaks).
Move on.
Time, energy, and maybe money have not been spent on the problem. It’s time to move on.
This tool usually fails when people jump too quickly from the negative feeling to gratitude. That jump can feel forced and dismissive. You are allowed to give yourself some time, just not TOO much. Consider the weight of the situation and dwell accordingly.