What do you do when the going gets tough?
What do you do when you feel icky? Feel alone?
What do you do when everything’s going wrong? When you’re feeling incredibly low?
I often get questions like these on Instagram, so today, I want to walk you through the process I use when the going gets tough, and I feel all alone.
But first, there’s something I want you to know!
You’re not alone. Everyone is alone. Everyone is afraid.
Recently, I felt very down. I was sad. And though everything—on the look on the outside—seemed great, I was dealing with many emotions.
You may find yourself in similar situations now and then. That’s alright as long as you know how to get out of that funk.
Here’s what I usually do to get back on track.
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Recognize and normalize how you feel
Instead of getting all worked up about feeling like a failure, I always try to normalize my feelings and look at these changes as me evolving and growing.
Changing your mindset to think of the situation as you evolving rather than failing can be a challenge—mainly because we tend to stick to a place where we feel safe and comfortable.
Imagine this.
Your comfort zone is like a circle surrounding you, and outside the border of your comfort zone lie all the gains you can achieve if you move out of your comfort zone.
As you cross the border of your comfort zone, you’re hit by self-doubt, fear of failure, and at the same time, past failures are sneaking up on you. In the end, you decide to surrender. You’re done resisting, and you’re back to square one—back in your comfort zone.
But that’s not how you evolve.
Rather than surrendering and letting fear of failure and self-doubt triumph, normalize your feelings. To suffer at different stages of a project, or even in life, is normal.
Growing my business and building a team have filled me with self-doubt and fear. Maybe you’re struggling to reach out to new clients, feeling uncomfortable spending more money than usual, or going through a breakup that makes you doubt who you are.
But remember this: you’re not failing. You’re growing and evolving!
Follow your vision and lock onto the target outside your comfort zone. Keep going, and as you move past the border, it becomes your new comfort zone. Applaud yourself for growing.
Maybe you're also interested in this: Can We Just ‘Be’?
Be proud of yourself
Change takes time, but you can do several things to wire your brain to speed up the process. For instance, if you feel stuck or feel like everything is going wrong, be proud of what you’ve already accomplished.
Often, we’re so focused on getting to the next step that we forget all the good things that came before that.
Remember to focus on the good news or your daily wins. Once you start emphasizing the positive things, you’ll wire your brain to follow this pattern more frequently.
One way to do this is by keeping a ‘good news log’ or a ‘win journal’. Here, you write every positive thing that has happened to you, and it doesn’t have to be life-changing events. It can be tiny things like quickly finding parking or skipping the queue at the grocery store.
At the end of the day, list three things that make you proud. Always focus on the good news!
Focus on the process and embrace it
One of the other strategies I use to keep going and find motivation is to focus on the current process rather than the end goal.
For instance, when I was studying, I kept looking at the total amount of chapters I had to read to pass my exams. In other words, I focused on the end goal—my exam. Then, one day, my mom told me:
“You can only do your best.”
And that has stuck with me since. Instead of focusing on the exams, I focused on the actual study process. I would set a timer on my phone, and once the time was over, I was done for the day. I invested in executing the process, and that helped me stay on track.
Of course, you need to know where you’re going; your mission must be clear, but once you have that in place, start putting more emphasis on the process.
Therefore, when the going gets tough, focus on the going.
Create a support system
If it hadn’t been for my support system, I wouldn’t be where I am today.
We all need such a system.
At the moment, you may feel alone, but you don’t have to it all alone. It’s totally fine to ask for help. It’s no secret that I rely on a ton of people—my family and boyfriend, my trainer, my business coach, my team, and so many other people.
A support system helps you stay committed to the process while reminding you where you’re going. But the first step to getting there depends on you. When you dare to actually ask for help and invest in a program, course, or community, it all becomes easier, and you’ll realize—on both good and bad days—that you’re never alone.
For instance, that's what the Business Freedom Elevator™️ is all about. Creating a support system that's not only educational but also uniting people to never feel alone.
Now, let’s recap the steps you can follow when you need to get back on track and find your motivation when the going gets tough:
- Recognize and normalize how you feel
- Be proud of yourself
- Focus on the process and embrace it
- Create a support system
Watch this episode on YouTube or listen via iTunes, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts, and search for episode 53 of The FastForwardAmy Show.
If you want more strategies to stay motivated and stay on track when the going gets tough, I'm giving you free access to the Get Your Shit Together training. I'll walk you through 10 steps that will help you feel you have your shit together, so you can be on top of your game.
Let me know what you think by tagging me in your Instagram stories @fastforwardamy.
PS. In just a week, you can take the first step to build that support system you need to stay committed, stay on track, and never feel alone again. Register to join the waitlist for the next Business Freedom Elevator™️. Preorder opens on December 2 with a €500 discount.
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