Yes, that frown statement is a cliché. And yes, we all find ourselves feeling down. And yes, even feeling unmotivated, discouraged, or sad. Are these the most productive emotions? Well, no. But feeling disheartened at times is part of life.
Unfortunately feeling disheartened is intricately linked to less productivity. And if not kept in check, these emotions can lead to depression that can adversely affect your business, as well as your personal life. As I have studied and embarked on my journey of personal development, I have seen a lot of advice surface to “just think different thoughts.” This is where the rebel chick in me appears.
I don’t disagree that these emotions are not the best and can definitely derail you. But they are natural emotions that we all feel from time to time. I believe the goal to never feel these emotions may be unattainable, especially if you are just starting out on your journey of self awareness. My view is to feel them, experience them, but know how to process them quickly, and then move onward and upward.
I think a lap in the pity pool can be healthy. The trick is to know when to get out before you are all prune-skinned and weary.
If you are feeling down, try these tips to get back on top of your game:
- Sleep it off. Sometimes our emotions become negative because we are physically tired. It can be too overbearing to be emotionally on a high when our physical bodies are exhausted. Body and mind are linked – don’t forget that!
- Take a moment when you discover you are feeling down. Stop and try to isolate the trigger. Often by identifying our triggers we can grow to allow them less power over our overall thoughts. It might be hormones, lack of sleep, or it might be a trigger from something you are holding on to from the past – a hurt from someone else, a life lesson ingrained in you that may not apply to you anymore, or even a paradigm we didn’t know we had!
- Address the emotions early. I know I used to think “It’s no big deal” and then suddenly I let an isolated incident snowball into flat out despair. It is often easier to “let it slide” than confront emotions that may feel uncomfortable. But when you do confront those emotions, you can identify them earlier in the unhappiness cycle. That will make them easier to counteract.
- This is a winner for me every time – feel gratitude – for anything! You cannot feel negative emotions and true gratitude at the same time! Chances are when you think of things to be grateful for: your pet, your child, your significant other, your best friend, the weather, the clothes you get to wear today, the activity you love that you get to be involved in today, the Universe, the moment of solitude you capture with your favorite beverage, you smile. This glimpse of happiness is what you hold on to. The thing you just thought of that makes you smile – think of THAT! Hold on to THAT! I find when I think of one thing to be grateful for (even though it may seem like a struggle to come up with the first one) and I really honestly feel that gratitude, more ideas of what I am grateful for pop into my head.
I have personally struggled with feeling less than productive emotions, and trying to get it turned around. I have found that “just think different thoughts” just didn’t cut it for me and left me more frustrated. I hope these tips help.
Help Is On The Way:
I usually do not self-promote in my blog, but I feel strongly on this subject. So strongly that I am developing a program to help. Ginormous Personal Satisfaction (GPS) for Life will include step by step tips, techniques, and worksheets to help you through emotions and past conditioning, and assist you in moving beyond them so you can achieve your goals. For more information on this upcoming program, visit GPS for Life. You can also sign up for our newsletter to be kept up to date on the release. I feel so passionately about this program that I just want to share and be of service to people who have experienced frustration while developing themselves and making a better life.
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