There are some days where you wake up refreshed and feel excited and passionate to take on the day! And then there are the other days where you don’t really want to get out of bed. You wish you had gotten a little more sleep and hadn’t stayed up to watch the last episode of Bloodline. You wish your boss was on vacation because his attitude yesterday just cannot be tolerated again today. You also wish you hadn’t sent that late night text to your girlfriend because now you aren’t sure if she is still your girlfriend. The other days kind of feel like what it would be like if Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day wrote an adult version of his life. So what do you do on the other days? You could be like Alexander and think about moving to Australia, but unfortunately, we know that it’s probably just going to lead to bigger problems, like… er… losing your job (which can sound appealing but probably best not to decide in this moment). Instead, I’ve found it’s helpful to breathe, focus on today and what motivates me.
Breathe
When we are rundown or not 100%, we can often feel the pressure of not feeling 100% when we would like to be. We sense ourselves being a little off, so we try to make up for what we are feeling by forcing ourselves past our mood. We exert extra energy into how we are acting which can sometimes backfire and makes us feel even more off. If forcing yourself past your mood works, then more power to you. For me, this only ends up taking it’s toll in the long run (if you need a visual, just picture Crutchy in Newsies shredding the newspapers). Instead of trying to fight the reality of where I am, I’ve found it helpful to start off the day with some deep breaths. Taking deep breaths, down into your stomach, is shown to physically relax our bodies and help fight any of the anxiety or stress we may feel about taking on the day.
Focus on Today
I struggle with anxiety so it’s easy for me to want to add to my problems when I feel any. When I’m feeling overwhelmed by today, my natural tendency is to let myself get overwhelmed by today and tomorrow. Keeping yourself in check about what you need to get done today, and not tomorrow, is important because it allows you to exert your energy on what’s necessary, not what’s a nice to have. Don’t stress yourself by adding more to your plate when you don’t need to.
Focus on What Motivates You
It’s amazing how much motivation is related to energy. If you are doing something that energizes you, then your ability to stay motivated during a task can remain longer than it would otherwise. It seems obvious but wasn’t something I realized until last year when I took an energy assessment. What energizes you has less to do with what you are doing and more to do with how you are doing it. For me, I’m motivated by relationships so if I’m doing a task to promote someone or work with someone, I’m going to be more motivated. For others, it could be the ability to feel accomplished into a certain time period so checking off completed steps is motivating. If you woke up with your energy level low, then the easiest way to counteract that is to find out what makes you motivated and incorporate that into your day.
I’ve felt my mood and attitude change just by taking these three steps. But if you don’t, you can always move on to option b… moving to Australia.
Leslie Delery 