Struggling in transition?
- Chill, Baby. You’re on track now to do good things. Change is unsettling, but you are taking charge of your life. Celebrate.
- Get dressed in the morning. Look good. Feel good so you can deliver.
- Exercise. Do you stop exercising because you get depressed or do you get depressed because you stopped exercising? Do whatever you need to do in order to keep your depression at bay. Take your meds if you are on them. Pray. Take care of yourself so you are able to deliver at your greatest level of performance.
- Take charge of your brain. If you put negative in, you get negative out. Put positive in, get positive out. You have tremendous power to control what you are thinking and, when you start hearing the negative tapes, just give yourself a verbal "Stop" cue with your self-talk. Deliberately replace your negative thoughts with something positive. It's easier if you have a list of five positive things to go to for those low moments. For example, "I've been so successful in the past. I'm smart enough to get through this."
- Know that tough times will not last forever. As much as it feels like you are sinking into a bottomless pit of quicksand, you aren't. Don't let yourself slide into the mentality that says you may never change, win or find happiness. All that does is make you struggle more.
- Remember who you are and who you are not. DON'T process rejection as failure. You are still talented and viable! Your setbacks have not erased your successes. They are just obstacles. You have succeeded in the past and you will succeed in the future.
- Choose your friends carefully. If you surround yourself with hopeless people, you'll lose hope. This can be hard if most of your friends are former co-workers who were also laid off. And, that can be even worse if you are competing for the same jobs against your friends. Focus on positive, successful people who will propel your success.
- Listen. What are you supposed to do with your life? The universe will send you many prompts. Great turning points often present themselves in passing. Know your weekly goals and achieve them by setting daily tasks. Then, DO THEM. Do something every day to move you closer to your goal
The most important thing is to have faith. Things do have a way of working out. This is not to minimize anybody’s suffering. Hope does not conquer all, but the truth is that there are very few of us who will wind up eating out of garbage cans. There’s so much we can’t control, so give your stress to the wind and have faith that you’ll get where you need to go if you just take the next step forward.