Everyone feels down. You cannot possibly be up all the time, if you were, then you would not enjoy the up times. You would not know what it meant to be down, so you could not possibly have happiness in your life without some downs. I think being down is also a way to recover a bit and get ready for your next level. Having said all that, being down really sucks. It really tests your resolve and proves what is really a habit and what is not.
If you get down, depressed, discouraged or whatever you want to call it and then you are unable to maintain your habit, then it was not really a habit. It needs to be strengthened, so that it can last through the good and bad times. So consider the down times as your ultimate test. If your habits fail, do not get discouraged. Just realized that yes, your habit failed and that you can try again until the next down time and see if you can make it through.
Perhaps I am more susceptible to having cycles of downtime then others. So maybe this makes me an expert. I have started to learn some mental games that I have to play to sustain a low point and keep up my base habits so that when I start getting back in the saddle again – I have at least maintained the core habits.
There are many tips that I could throw out. I suspect that I am not the only one that has moments of discouragement or when stress takes its toll. In fact, I think we all go through it, we just do not talk about it. Here are some quick pointers that work for me:
1. Recognize and admit that you are in a down cycle and accept that this is just part of life. Do not read too much into it.
2. Be willing to take a step back and rest, recover, or do something different. The down time is usually a warning sign that you need a change of pace for a while.
3. Let loved ones know. They will read into your emotions and fill in the gaps. Better to let them know, so that they are not left guessing.
4. Pick some small and easy tasks that you can do and get done quickly. Put on the shelf the more complicated stuff, you probably will not do a good job anyway, so you can at least get some small stuff knocked out.
5. Keep up your core habits. You will notice that the length of your down times will decrease significantly when you keep good habits, regardless. You will recover quickly.
Last but not least, do not turn to excessive abuse of anything bad. Too much TV, too much sugar, too much caffeine, too much cocaine….Whatever it is, do not go down that path – it only prolongs any down feelings and will cause you to slip on keeping and maintaining good habits. Ok, Seriously, if you are doing cocaine, then you need help immediately. I was just being funny. But go ahead and substitute whatever it is that you turn to when feeling down. DO not do that to excess. One small scoop of ice cream, not the whole freaking gallon.
You can rise up again after being down, but you are never going to not be down. Better just learn to deal with it.
Guy Reams (607)
