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It is indeed true that life is full of unpleasant circumstances, but what most of us fail to see is that it also comes with lessons necessary for our growth as individuals and for upgrading our quality of life.
Five years ago, I was very disappointed with myself. While some of my friends were already so focused in building their future, there I was, clueless of what I really wanted to do with my life. Needless to say, I didn’t have direction, purpose and worst of all, money to fuel my dreams.
Until one day, one of my cousins who also happened to be my best friend, Karla, approached me and talked to me about fixing my life. If it was a different person, I would’ve been offended but because I knew her since we were kids and I believed that she was only thinking of my best interests, I took the time to listen to her.
Karla’s faith in me made me believe in myself again. She inspired me to redefine the rules of my life and change the whole game.
Support from someone who truly cares is just one way to deal with disappointments. Here are other ways you can better handle unexpected events and difficult trials in the course of your life.
Don’t Let It Define You
Overcoming unexpected life’s bitter blows can be very difficult especially for people who always beat themselves up. They blame themselves for all the ugly circumstances in their lives and punish their own selves by dwelling on their negative feelings.
Ladies, it’s not always about you. Sometimes, things are just the way they are and you can only do so much. So, try not to take it personally and don’t let it define you. Instead of wallowing in your sadness, use your ability to see life from a deeper and bigger perspective, try to understand what your circumstances are trying to teach you and figure out what you can learn from them that can help you make better decisions in the future.
In your career, for instance, job rejection can really suck, but it is a part of life loaded with potential for your professional and personal growth. So, don’t let the interviewer’s decision determine your self-worth. And though things don’t always go smoothly, what’s important is that you always choose to rise up from the ashes and emerge stronger.
Learn Acceptance
One of the harsh truths of life that you have to accept whether you like it or not, is that life is full of disappointments. Why? Because nothing and nobody is perfect. You will always get disappointed and others will disappoint you. It’s a hard fact that no one can change.
And the best way to deal with things that you cannot change is to just allow them to become part of you and let them help you grow. Acceptance is to open yourself up to the changes around you, to be willing to look at things from a bigger perspective and to shift your thinking to traverse the new path that life offers you.
Once you learn to embrace the things that you cannot control and let go of resistance that limits you, life will flow smoother and everything will become easier. Also, when you don’t let your failures and disappointments dictate your actions, you will gain freedom, you will see more opportunities and you will come up with better decisions in your life.
And to empower your spirit to become a more accepting and peaceful, check this out – “An Introduction to Mindfulness & Meditation.”
According to writer AZU, meditation is the process of losing oneself to find oneself. It’s a way to kill one’s ego. And once your ego dies, you will be able to dismantle the things that are insignificant in your life and focus on navigating your new path and perspective.
Set Realistic Expectations
One of the biggest causes of disappointments is unrealistic expectations. Some people set their projections too high to the point that they’re not even aligned with reality anymore. It becomes more of an illusion.
I have a friend who’s getting married by the end of this year. Her fiance doesn’t even have a stable job but she is looking forward to having a very big and expensive wedding. So, she convinced her fiancé to sell his car and get loans here and there. And when I asked her how they would be able to pay all their debts after their wedding, she said that they’re hoping that the money they would get from their rich relatives would suffice. Seriously?
In the piece “9 Fights You’ll Definitely Have With Your SO When You Move In Together,” writer Bobby Box gives a perfect example on how you can set realistic expectations during one of your life’s major transitions.
Try a Different Strategy
Given that you have tried all the steps I’ve mentioned above and for some reason, things didn’t work for you, another option that you can do is to try a different tactic. Don’t just give up right away, instead explore your other options and look for another possible course of action.
For example, if exercising or if your current diet isn’t working for you, be open to try a new approach. Have you tried cutting down your sugar intake? If not, check this out – “3-Week Plan to Help Eliminate Sugar From Your Diet.”
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