…or should I say “missing?”
Today, the unthinkable happened! I had just completed a week’s worth of writing, tweaking, and editing my blog and was ready to send it off for posting when it happened…I erased the entire document without saving it!! I had already conquered perfection paralysis in order to write the blog, but was now wallowing knee-deep in pure shock as I stared at my blank computer screen in total disbelief.
Then the spiral began. Opening, closing, clicking, tapping, searching, cursing, trying to figure it out! I was out of time and in panic mode. As I told a friend (or maybe, complained to her) that I had just deleted several pages of a blog I had written on Adversity, it hit me head on…
What would I tell someone else who was experiencing this setback? Is that how am I handling this adversity right now?
As far as life’s challenges go, I get that this is small potatoes compared to events that could truly upset our balance and rock our worlds. But, this is a great example of applying what I know about resiliency to my own troubles! So, I pulled myself together and set to work.
First, I had to stop and access the situation to put things into perspective.
Panicking over this is not going to help, so I needed to relax and come up with a plan, ASAP. I thought about what was most important in all of this. My answer: the ultimate goal of blogging is to share my expertise in personal development and growth. I cannot help people if they don’t know I exist.
Allowing me to break free of the tailspin, this revelation cleared my head so that I could revisit my values and identify what is most important to me. I often encourage my clients to do the same, and many can attest to the benefits. Some of the values at the top of my list are honesty, integrity, and authenticity.
So, I thought, “Own it, Jean! You erased the document, you hold the responsibility here, be honest with yourself, get over it, and use it as an example of how you behaved through your challenge.”
Integrity to me means walking your talk, a crucial and vital step to overcoming obstacles in a way that allows for grace and learning.
I decided to share this incident instead of brushing it aside because I think it’s important to bring more of “me,” both the good and the bad, to the surface. Being authentic about who I am allows me to connect with clients on a deeper, more personal level. And, recognizing that we all make mistakes is healthier than attempting to appear perfect and above human error (which may be our initial response). Right?
I will still try to recover the original blog on adversity (wouldn’t want you to miss it) or I will rewrite it. Either way, I decided early on that this drama would NOT ruin the beautiful, sunny, fall day. It would not take away from my other commitments, and it would all be OK.
Adversity runs on a spectrum for sure, but when I recognized where my thoughts were taking me, I enlisted the following tools and resources to turn them around:
- Don’t panic – stop and assess.
- Realize things could always be worse.
- Don’t make something bigger than it should be.
- Think about what is possible and what can be done.
- Ask for help.
- Consider what’s important about this situation. Are my values at stake?
- Be flexible.
- Own what needs to be owned.
- Breath and move forward.
This all begins with making a choice about how and who you want to be!
Enjoy
