Life moves in seasons where it undergoes peaks and valleys. A peak is when you are naturally happy because everything is going according to plan and nothing can ruin your positive disposition. You are stuck in a reflective state and can find everything under the sun to be thankful for. The valley is when you feel as if you are stuck in a rut, sad, depressed, frustrated, and you become a compulsive complainer because your vision for your life is not in alignment with your reality.
The unknown doesn’t come with an instruction manual. It is actually scary and can paralyze you to the point where you get stuck in your own head, enter a self-sabotaging panic zone and ultimately shut down. This happens because you think that you have lost all ability to effectively problem solve and start to allow your negative emotions to lead you instead of logic.
You are probably wondering how in the hell can I break free of this and thrive even when I feel like I don’t know what decision to make or how to break free from my own self limiting thoughts.
Here are 3 tips that will help you to get unstuck when you think that you don’t have the answers to enter into the next phase of your life.
- Nothing last forever: Expect that your life will encounter ups and downs and proactively plan for time in the valley when you are experiencing a peak. Of course, there will come a time where you are stuck in the valley, but understand that it is only temporarily if you can condition your mindset to weather the storm.
- There is a lesson to be learned while you are in the valley. It is important that you embrace the experience verses focusing on the negative. The valley is a vessel designed to prepare you for something greater. It has a purpose. If you pay attention and quite your mind, the purpose of your season in the valley will be revealed to you. Once that purpose has been revealed, I encourage you to embrace it whether you like it or not. When you learn not to fight those experiences in life that are less desirable, the faster you will come out of the valley. Resistance will only prolong your experience. Learn to accept the good with the bad and press on with your head held high.
- You have the ability to persevere and the answer to your future is in your past: Every phase of your life is a brand spanking new phase. And guess what, you have learned how to survive this far so there isn’t a need to fear the future. Of course, you may be emotionally scarred by a few things that took place in your past, but you didn’t give up. Here is something to think about to help you understand this concept. Let’s just say at some point of your life you were a full time college student, a wife/husband, and mother/father. I am sure during that phase of your life you didn’t have a clue as how you were going to balance it all. Today you are a graduate, your marriage is strong and your children are somewhat notable citizens in the world. (Read this upcoming sentence twice) When your life was chaotic somehow through all the madness, you figured it out. The best way to thrive within the unknown is to understand that you have the ability to figure it out and that you have the means to take life one day at a time. If you were able to figure out a difficult situation in your past, then you have the ability to figure out the curb balls that will fly at you in the future. There is no right way to do anything and you will have the opportunity to design your future if you allow yourself to be imperfect and flexible.
- Stop over thinking: Why, because when you over think, it will be unlikely that are you in a solution-oriented mindset. Over thinking allows you breathe life into “what if” scenarios that will probably never manifest unless you focus on them. Over thinking will only make you stress and worry about nothing. Instead, spend some time considering your options and then create viable action plans that will help you move forward. Think about what you want your outcome to look like and pursue just that. Focus on what could go right vs. what could go wrong.
Remember that in life there are these beautiful things called options and perspectives. Understand that you are never stuck unless you chose to be and how you decide to comprehend a situation will be a determining factor of the type of outcome that you experience. The next time you feel yourself freaking out just remember that you figured out how to get yourself out of the last jam that you had and that you will figure out future obstacles. Get out of your head and start making some decisions about your desired lifestyle.
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Your Business Systems Strategist
Wendy Nicole Anderson