THE 3 R’S OF MANAGING TOUGH TIMES
Tough times challenge us all. They startle us, knock the wind out of us, take us to our knees or weaken our strongest resolve.
Tough times do not play favorites. They find the kindest of us, the wealthiest of us, the least and most deserving of us.
As the saying suggests, it is not the tough situation that determines the outcome but the how of handling it that matters.
We never choose the unexpected, the situations that drain us or the tragedies that life flings our way.
We do get to choose how to manage the situation and ourselves. The 3 R’s of coping with struggles: Remember, Release and Resilient – applied during tough times, give us a grounding source to which we can anchor ourselves.
And while we are anchored, we can plan our smoothest route to relief. Remember yourself at your best, your strongest and your most centered self. There have been times in your life when you had your life in flow.
When your life was smooth sailing, happy, fulfilled and sunny. Regardless of how long you remember this period of grace to be, you have had the experience. Remember it as it existed. Know that this condition is available to you again.Know this even as your life seems to be anything but AOK. Release the thoughts that exaggerate your situation.
When we are struggling, we amplify thoughts, conditions, and behaviors that underline and support our current struggles. We review, rehash and embrace what is making us most miserable.
We replay the hurt, the offense, the embarrassment and the pain. We project the bleak future that we imagine this struggle will produce. To effectively release and reassign those defeating thought replays, we must recognize them as soon as they present themselves. Tag them, title them and trash them for what they are.
Thoughts and hurts and defeats reviewed again and again strengthen the misery loop and keep us spinning and spinning and …… Push “play” on your Resiliency. Recall times in your life when your personal resiliency gave you the buoyancy to float to the top of tough times.
You were knocked down by what life dealt you, floundered around and yet got back up. Your recalled resiliency might have nothing to do with your current condition.
It might seem minor or petty compared to what you have in front of you now. What matters is that you ARE resilient. You have many examples from your life when you were.
Resiliency doesn’t go away. It is always available to you. But…..it must be chosen,awakened and employed. Resiliency doesn’t have to be a “bootstraps” approach.
It can be a gentle, baby steps knowing that you have the power, the desire, and the will to proceed and prevail through even the darkest of struggles.
The 3 R’s of coping with tough times are immediately available upon request. But….. they do require that we chose to use them.
You are tough enough, strong enough and smart enough to navigate your tough times. And tough times are temporary. I can assist you in re-discovering yourself and applying your 3 R’s.
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- 9 Years as Facilitator for local retiement adjustment group
- Bachelor of Science in Education (B.S.)
- Three Master's Degrees (M. Eds) in Learning Remediation, Vocational Education and Administration.
- Certified Family Transitions Coach (Certified Through Coach Training Alliance)
- Active member of International Coach Federation.
- Lifelong learner and practitioner of gracefully applying grit to life's challenging transitions.
Email: Julie@JulieGreen.org
Phone: 208-755-2824
