Many years ago a wise man told me that if you move to DC the first things you need to buy are a good umbrella and a pair of sunglasses. This seemed like a contradiction, so I asked him why a new DC resident would need those items. He replied that in this part of the country it can be bright and sunny in the morning but pouring rain by the afternoon. Having lived here most of my life, I can attest that is true.
This sort of thing can happen in our lives as well. There will be times when the world appears bright and sunny and you feel like you can do no wrong. There will also be times when the clouds move in and the rain washes away a lot of the good you worked so hard to achieve. If you live life long enough there is one thing that I can guarantee will happen to you: life will humble you. The storms often come when we least expect them and catch us off guard.
How you react to the storms is what will ultimately determine how successful you are in life. Too often people get overwhelmed by the size of a challenge and quit before they even get started. Here are some tips to help you tackle life’s storms without quitting:
• Roll up your work sleeves and develop a plan to get you from where you are to where you want to be
• Set short-term realistic goals
• Focus on the present tasks; focusing too much on the future will overwhelm you
• Work on the fundamentals daily
• Stay positive and surround yourself with positive people as much as possible
• Use haters or doubters to motivate yourself instead of letting them bring you down
• Acknowledge the small victories and allow yourself to feel good about them
• If you get knocked down, don’t let yourself stay down too long
As your new day begins, bring your sunglasses and your umbrella and be ready for anything, confident that you can handle whatever storms or sunshine life throws your way.
Have a great weekend,
Ro