How To Make Yourself Feel GREAT Again
“Rock bottom became the solid foundation upon which I rebuilt my life.” - J.K Rowling
For me, the fastest and easiest way to feel crap about myself, or to trigger a pity-party is by comparing my life - to the exterior life that I see others lead. My Mom always told me that there will always, always be people in the world who will be worse off than you, and always those who will be better off. But never judge people by what you see. Facebook is a great example of this. Everyone seems to live the perfect lives, have the perfect kids and the perfect relationships.
It’s really a load of crap. The vast majority of people who post on social media are only putting their best foot forward, so don’t get fooled into thinking their lives are that perfect. No one’s life is. Most people’s battles are hidden far from view.
I remember once working with a client who appeared to have it all - the happiest of marriages, an uber-successful business and four incredible kids. If you read his wife’s posts on Facebook you would think they lived the life that story-books are based on. The reality was vastly different. The wife had recently been diagnosed with a debilitating, progressive illness, the husband wasn’t coping too well and was drinking far more than he should be, and the kids were all struggling. The good news is that today they are all doing a LOT better, but these secret battles are rarely visible. So don’t compare your insides with someone else’s outsides.
Today when I come across someone living a perfect exterior life - I send them blessings and a prayer to help them through whatever is not visible. And I nip my pity party before it grabs a hold of me by going through my gratitude list. Another good strategy I’ve learned to break the spell of feeling sorry for myself is to do something for someone else. A random act of kindness - like buying the person behind me at the Starbucks drive through their latte (the first time someone did this to me I was speechless!).
Here are some other random acts of kindness to help you feel GREAT again
Bake cookies for the elderly.
Help at a veterinarian office.
Pick up litter on the beach.
Let someone go in front of you in line.
Give a stranger a compliment.
Leave money on a vending machine for someone.