In these times of stress, how do you stay optimistic? Repetitive worries become unconscious mantras spiraling us into deeper levels of stress and depression. It is a vicious cycle that can lead us into illness and disease.
You cannot really break the cycle with some Stuart Smiley “everything is going to be OK,” self-talk when you do not really know or believe that everything will be OK. People losing jobs and homes in an economy fueled by fear find it hard to see everything will be OK from where they are standing now.
So, the question is, “How do you become optimistic, even in the worst of times?” Be in gratitude for these dark parts of the journey. It may sound crazy, but I have found it to be the road to redemption.
Trust in what you know. Know that you are brave. This is evidenced by your bravery to see the obstacles and make a way forward anyway. Life may have knocked you to your knees, but the will to survive pushes you to stand up again. We do not lie down to die because we face financial crisis. We get up and look for a way to make it back onto solid ground. That takes courage. Congratulate yourself for doing what needs to be done—whether its debt management, credit counseling, finding another job or any of the other million and one possible obstacles you may be facing in this moment.
This dark place in the journey is an opportunity. This is the place where you find self-reliance and stretch beyond past limitations to see a way through. It is a place where you find new abilities. I am not saying this place is free of cursing and tears, only that it is an opportunity to push off from the solidity of the bottom to reach new heights.
Know that you are brave. Know that tomorrow does not have to look like today. Breath into the truth that you are the only one like you in the universe and that makes you as precious as a rare and priceless work of art.
Touch on the self-reliance that got you out of bed and stretch it forward. Try new ideas. It will not be comfortable, but it will be a step forward. Remember, it is a road. Just keep putting one foot in front of the other on the path.
Now, thank yourself for coming to this place—to see the wrongs and fix them. Thank yourself for allowing this experience—all the pain and the glory—so that you could step forward stronger and wiser. Repeat these steps everyday. And remember a better day is possible. Believe.
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I love your points of view! Keep it up