March 3, 2019: A Necessary Change of Attitude
It’s that time of year again! Our home decluttering project has been put on the back burner while we’re getting ready to meet with our accountant. Being self-employed means you have to keep track of all the myriad of details running a business.
After a long week dealing with a nasty, chest cold, and immersed in the tedium and often overwhelming task of preparing for tax season; (imagine papers and thousands of tiny products covering every available surface), I found myself in a self-blaming funk, reflecting on “”why wasn’t I more: 1.efficient 2. organized 3. focused 4.timely and so on.
My Jiminy Critic wasn’t being positive it was being a loud-mouthed bully!
I’m usually a positive person, but bitterly, cold weather with gray, gloomy skies and lack of exercise due to illness, added to an ambience of negativity. After a week of this, I awoke feeling both anxious and disgruntled in the spectre of the tasks that faced me. I didn’t like feeling this way and I know that a cranky, snappy spouse is not fun to live with for my husband Ron either. As I was morosely laying in bed, I thought about what I could do to move through these doldrums. For a start, I needed some motivation and decided to sort through my collection of quotes which I use for inspiration and on our website.
The first one reaffirmed what I already knew:
“The greatest discovery of all time is that a person can change his future by merely changing his attitude.” Oprah Winfrey
Okay, I thought, I need to change my attitude, but how? I still have all this work to do…….I can’t swim…..the house is a mess and I still feel crummy!..
I read on until I found this one:
“Any change, even a change for the better, is always accompanied by drawbacks and discomforts. “ Arnold Bennett
I thought about how, despite the “discomfort” of sorting through all my jewelry parts, I’m finding pieces I had forgotten about, have been inspired with new ideas, and am becoming more efficient with our accounting software. I am slowly getting through the process, and the end of the tunnel is actually in sight.
Finally, I found one quote that truly resonated.
“I can’t change the direction of the wind, but I can adjust my sails to always reach my destination.” Jimmy Dean
I decided to “adjust my sails” and put back in practice, tried and true strategies I’ve found to be successful in the past.
- Meditation-Calms my busy brain and quiets the negative thoughts
- Count my blessings-Automatically switches the dark thoughts to bright ones
- Nurture Myself-Soothing herbal teas, hot baths with scented candles, cuddling with puppies, talking with a loving friend/family member, snuggling under the covers with a good book….
- Take Breaks-Time off for “good work behavior” during each day to do something pleasurable of relaxing…naps count!.
- Create-The bookkeeping and accounting part of our jewelry business is not joyful, but creating is. It reminds me of why I”m on this path as a jewelry designer. I’ve created some new pieces for March and the upcoming season
- Eat healthy-We are what we eat….I have stayed away from high carbohydrate and sugary foods that trigger mood swings or inflammation
- Spend time in Nature- I couldn’t go out, but I found great joy in watching the many birds who flock to our deck feeders. It’s a daily show that never fails to delight.
- Read- From inspirational quotes to rich fiction, there is no time for negativity when my mind is engaged.
- Laugh-Light hearted comedies and happy ending movies are a great antidote to the “gloomies”.
- Be thankful- I remembered to renew my practice of ending each day, reflecting and expressing gratitude for my life.
Once I started implementing the positive things I could do, I found my mood lifting. Although I still have the cold and a lot of work to do, each day seems brighter, I have more energy, and definitely a better attitude for which my husband Ron is thankful for. Like a Spring breeze sweeping away the remains of Winter, the fog of gloom was dispelled with basically just an attitude change.
Do you ever have periods of what I call the “glooms”? I’d love to hear about any successful strategies you have found to help.