Sometimes things just don’t go the way we want them to. The printer jams, five people call and need you at the same time, you run out of milk. It’s these small things that can somehow add up and get us down.
So how do you handle days like this? A lot of magazines and TV “experts” will tell you to breathe. However, this doesn’t do a thing for me. I’m always breathing—whether I’m calm or not! I’ve found that the best solution for me is to stop. I simply don’t do ‘printer surgery’, ask if I can call people back later, and eat oatmeal instead of cereal. Then I ask myself what I can do to start fixing the situations I’m in. Writing down a short list of things to do gives me a better sense of control of the situation. Then I do each item on the list, in order. There’s no need to worry about all the other problems going on, just focusing on one thing at a time is enough.
Eventually, I use patience make it through the day and am prepared to make the next day better.
