“It feels like I’m stuck in a tunnel and can’t see the light,” that’s what I heard from a friend Thursday night when I found myself at one of my favorite Italian restaurants. It was after 9pm when I stopped in intending to grab a salad and sip on their homemade limoncello (I have a weakness for all things citrus.) They were clearing out for the night so we had a chance to sit and catch up.
This friend is a wildly talented guy with more energy than any five people I know. He is a gracious host and his staff love him. During the day, he tunes pianos and can currently even be spotted at the Decorator’s Showhouse on weekends playing piano.
He was in a bit of a funk Thursday night. While he loves his work and is really good at it, he also loves piano playing and tuning and can’t quite see past where he is now to where he can go with everything. He’s in one of those tunnels we all find ourselves in from time to time when we can’t see far enough to view the light at the end and just feel stuck. Can you relate? (This is especially prevalent among those of you who are multi-talented creatives, wearing multiple hats!)
Our conversation reminded me of the times I’ve fallen into stuck and stalled (despite my thrive mentality) because it is so damn easy. Being positive, on the other hand, takes effort and courage. And, yes, there are those days you just don’t want to be upbeat. You want to kill the next sunshiny person you encounter. You want to pop Mary Poppins. I hear you!
In fact, it was Monday morning when I read in my inspirational calendar “Remember that deciding to be happy and healthy requires courage and focus. It is ever so much easier to allow negativity and fear to run your life.”
There are 3 Simple Secrets to Tapping Your Happy Factor:
1. Talk to trusted friends, find others who have been where you are and get inspired by how they got through it. We all have these times. I call this Kick-in-the-pants Therapy.
2. Watch the news. I know this may sound counter intuitive, but there is always some disaster going on that will give you the necessary wake up call to how damn lucky you really are and set you on the gratitude path. I call this Thank You Therapy.
3. Acknowledge your greatness. Create a list of 100 adjectives to describe yourself. Check in with friends, family, co-workers, and more. You’ll be surprised to learn that what you see isn’t what they see. I call this Trust Your Brilliance Therapy.
Time and again when I have assigned these “therapies” to clients (and of course to friends and colleagues in a funk), I’ve watched as they start to shift their attitude from one frustration to fun, from stalled to soaring, from negative to nice. Go for it.
I dare you, and get in touch with the results.
It won’t take long.
As always, I welcome your comments and shares here. You are the reason I’m here!
