Two Things I Like about a BAD DAY!
Being a dad with two daughters who are fairly young, I get
the opportunity to “grow” every day (no sarcasm intended). With children, I have learned that what
worked yesterday, may not work today and will definitely change tomorrow. Flexibility and patience are two skills that
we will all continue to develop however, these skills seem to be accelerated
for those in parenthood….especially during bathtimes and getting out of the
house in the morning.
For fellow parents, I realize I’m stating the obvious but my
‘growth moment’ of today that I shared with (surprise surprise) my daughter, I
realized the two things I actually like about bad days. Bad days SUCK, no question….but these are two
things to remember.
1) Bad days provide
you with opportunities to learn what not to do. You can practice being flexible, patient and
diplomatic (see previous blog). A big
one for me is to practice ‘not taking it personal’ as Miguel Ruiz wrote in his
awesome book, ‘The 4 Agreements’. Bad
days also provide you with the opportunity to be aware of your surroundings and
your actions and to know what not to do for next time.
2)
Bad days end. The second thing I like about Bad days is
that they eventually come to an end.
Everything does….yet it’s difficult to remember this when we are having
a bad day. Sleep on it, start a new
chapter, tackle your troubles the next day with a fresh mind. This is obviously not a prescription for any
type of depression which is very serious and there are great resources to help
with this. We may have friends
and family (perhaps ourselves) who suffer from mental illness. This point and post is simply me sharing what
I have used to talk myself through challenging moments.
Nobody is immune to a ‘bad day’ and others
deal with it differently. There are constructive
ways like journaling and physical activity to ‘let go’ and it’s important to
find the best approach that works for us. In this journey of balancing the family,
career, physical, spiritual and mental arenas of our life, we will see setbacks,
unexpected changes, failures, and disappointments. Yet, we will also see progress, pleasant
surprises, success and achievements.
“Take
a deep breath. It’s just a bad day, not
a bad life!” (Author unknown)
-Gautam
Khanna
