In A Funk? Here's How To Fight It!

If it weren't for some workshops and classes that I'm preparing for, I might not even know what day it is. "Oh yeah, it's Blursday," is what I've heard others say. I had a conversation with someone today who found himself in a funk. "I'm not gonna lie, this quarantine has been tough," he said quietly as his eyes filled with tears. I'm with you, Buddy. 

I know exactly how he felt, because I found myself in a funk about a month ago.  Halfway through the year, and I was nowhere closer to the goals that I set for myself in January.  The  gym was still not open. I'm a hugger and hardly anyone wanted to hug. My Fourth of July trip to visit my kids was cancelled. Yes, I was in a funk.  Actually, that is a nice way of saying that I was feeling sorry for myself.  I didn't feel like doing anything about it. either. I wanted to wallow. The funk became my own difficult obstacle to a joyful attitude. 

I am going to give you some solutions to survive a funk, but first I want to share with you ways not to shovel yourself in deeper:
 
1. Don't watch the news for extended periods of time.  Between the riots and the election cycle, I felt helpless to change anything and that made me feel hopeless. Don't get me wrong, I do keep up with news, but in short spurts and mostly online.

2. Don't go looking at other people's Facebook pages. I found myself looking at everyone's smiling faces, romantic get-aways and the accomplishments of those that are where I would like to be. I compared myself to others and found myself smack in the middle of feelings of lack and envy.

Blend hopeless, helpless, lack and envy together and I was drinking a dark cocktail of funk, WHAAAAAATTTT? What was I doing? This was not normal for me. 

I decided that I not only needed to change my state of being, but it was what I really desired. Period. I might not be able to go on vacation and get away from it all,  but I could change my attitude right where I was.  Here are some things that worked for me:

1. I practiced gratefulness. Truffle and I ventured out into the breezy, cool morning to take a walk.  Most of the time, just watching Truffle makes me smile. I became grateful for the fact that  I am really healthy, as is my family. I love where I live.  I have a loving husband, family and friends. I am grateful to have the opportunity to add value to others through leadership training and coaching.  I consider my faith to be a priceless gift.

Gratefulness kind of permeated my being and opened the door for a bit of joy to enter in. When I got back to the house, I looked at my own personal Facebook page. I decided to compare myself to me--how much I have grown, my accomplishments for this last year and the fact that I am a better version of myself than before. The memories, the pictures and even the small wins made me glad.

2. I read a good book. I read a book about my passions because I knew I could lose myself there for awhile. For me, those passions right now are leadership and communication skills. The impact of honing leadership skills is life-expanding and communicating better is definitely a goal of mine.

3. I ate ice cream--I always serve my ice cream in a little cake cup cone because it takes longer to eat and I can't fit so much ice cream in one of those. When I get to the very bottom of the cake cone, Truffle can have a bite of that, because dogs can't have chocolate. Ice cream always makes me feel better.

4. I listened to great music--Listening to music (Motown) has helped tremendously. I have a couple of songs that really drive me, make me feel good, and make me feel like dancing. I'll listen to those and dance right there in my office. The endorphins (chemicals produced by the brain) from exercise make us feel sooooo good.  You know songs that bring to mind a great time or memory, too. 

Needless to say, I am out of the funk. My circumstances haven't changed, but I changed my mental environment and made my life more enjoyable. Wayne Dyer quotes, "If you change the way you look at things, the things you look at change." That is certainly what happened to me.

I hope this helps you. If you have some other funk-defying methods, I would sure love to hear them. Make it a great week.
 

Gratefully typed, 

Jan 

Jan McDonald
The John Maxwell Team