Last week I had a big “ah ha” moment!
On Tuesday it was about mid-morning, and I could feel my day starting to circle the drain. Things were not going my way.
My inbox was overflowing thanks to a technical glitch that sent every email I deleted or filed away back into my inbox. I then received a call advising me that the boxes of books that I sent to the hotel where my next event was taking place were refused and not delivered. Then, to top it all off, while on the phone with the courier trying to fix the delivery issue, my 16-week old “house trained” puppy sauntered into my office, looked me square in the eye, and promptly peed on my carpet!
What are you supposed to do when your day is going off the rails, and it is only 10 a.m.?
3 Keys to Getting Your Day on Track
Not every day is going to go as planned. I think we all know that. However, just because things are not going as planned, doesn’t mean we cannot readjust and get them rolling our way.
Here are three key ideas that might help the next time you find yourself losing control.
1. STOP AND RESET
Anytime I feel myself completely losing my cool, I realize I have to stop immediately and start my day over again. If I do not, I know that things are only going to get worse.
So I stop and I reset. Did I start my day the way I usually do? Did I skip my morning ritual? Ahhh… my morning ritual! This brings me to step 2.
2. CREATE A MORNING RITUAL
A huge part of my day for the past six months has been to set aside 10 minutes of quiet time each morning to write in my Daily Success Planner. (I mostly developed this journal for myself, but I am thrilled to report that many others are getting the benefit now as well).
Last Tuesday, when my day was going completely off the rails, I realized I had skipped my daily routine. I needed to go back to the first step, which is to set my intention for the day. So, I went back, pulled out my journal and wrote down “have a drama free day.” For me, this was similar to pressing the reset button.
During my morning ritual, I also reminded myself of what gives me confidence, what I am grateful for and what major things I want to accomplish on this day.
When you check in with things like gratitude, it immediately shifts your perspective.
When you check in with things like gratitude, it immediately shifts your perspective. Click to tweet
On that particular day, I wrote that I was grateful for the joy that our new puppy brings us but also grateful for the idea of keeping the puppy on a leash or in his crate while I am at work.
3. Distract Yourself with Something Positive
Shifting my mood over to something positive was pretty easy. I knew that Ellen Degeneres was on at 10 am, so I turned on the tv. The effects were immediate; there’s nothing like laughing to change up your biology in the middle of a crisis.
Now, even though I say “crisis,” please note that I do recognize all of these things were pretty mild in the big scheme of things. I just have to think about some of my clients to gain perspective. My client, Alvin Law was born without arms, and every day he faces challenges that I could never imagine, like having to remove his shoes so he can hand his boarding pass and other documents with his toes at the various security checkpoints when he travels! Another client, Paul Templer who lost one arm to an angry hippopotamus many years ago, is battling cancer and fighting for his life right now.
Perspective, right? It only takes a moment to gain some.
The bottom line on getting your day back on track when you can see it going off the rails is to get intentional about where you want it to go from there and then decide to change it.
I have been on a roll for the past six months since starting my daily routine. And because I knew where I had gone wrong last Tuesday morning (by allowing my day to begin without setting intention), I could easily go back and start over again.
What do you do when you feel your day slipping away? I hope you will share in the comments below.
See you soon Wealthy Speakers!
PS – If you need help creating a routine that will help you find greater success, check out our Wealthy Speaker Daily Success Planner and Journal. We are offering FREE SHIPPING through 12/15 – and you’ll have it to start 2018!!
