The single most helpful tactic for getting through rough times

GM!

Life hits you hard sometimes.

It’s been curb stomping me lately.

Placing my figurative top teeth on top of the figurative concrete curb outside the sketchy, figurative laundromat and kicking the back of my figurative head.

Figuratively.

But I have one simple trick for getting through tough things like:

• Hard relationship conversations

• Periods of strenuous work (9-5, client work, music gigs, etc.)

• Running long distances (10km for me haha)

And that trick is telling myself "I live here now. It's going to be like this forever."

Changes the game.

It's nuts.

Visually, I’m picturing the optimalist manifesto.

Imagine a tree growing on the side of a mountain.

The elements are stacked against it: the soil is not ideal, the wind buffets, and seasons are severe.

But the tree thrives.

It endures, and grows with vitality.

In spite of it all, its roots continue to deepen through the earth as the branches grow towards the sunrise, symbolizing hope and the optimism of a new day.

That’s what I think about.

I’m a tree, in less than ideal conditions.

But I’m strong, and I’m not going to quit growing.

Because we only get one chance at life.

It would suck to waste even 5 minutes on a pity party if you could use that time to grow.

So, try that phrase and visual imagery next time you’re feeling like life is making you chew aluminum foil with braces.

It works.

Cheers,

Swanagan