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What to do When You're Having "One of those Weeks"...



Just breathe and realize you can't control everything

How to deal with a bad week

Ever have a truly horrible week, where within the first 12 hours, you know it's not going to get any better? Yeah. That's me this week.

In the last 24 hours, the following happened to me:

I learned that I'm going to be losing health insurance for both myself and my daughter within a month, and need to start the nightmare process of replacing it.

I had my floors cleaned, and the company that did it DESTROYED them - Like, the floors are more warped than the space time continuum in Back to the Future II.

My front veneer chipped and needs to be replaced.

Oh, and taxes are due.

Yeah. That kind of Monday.

When things like this happen, our first reaction is to constantly think about it. It invades our brain, and we think of nothing else. The bad stuff is all we can focus on, and it overpowers anything good that might come our way.

READ MORE: Don't be afraid to fail

Which, of course, is not even remotely healthy. I'm guilty of this, too. My daughter asked me out of the blue yesterday why I was so mad, and I didn't have an answer.

So I refer to one of my old favorites: "Can't change it."

I can't fix my floors today. There's a process. I have to go through it. But they'll be fixed.

I can't get new insurance today. There's a process. I have to go through it. But I will get it.

I can't fix my tooth today, no amount of rubbing my tongue against it will do anything. There's a process. I have to go through it. But it will be repaired.

My point is, time passes regardless of whether we worry about things or whether we let them go. Instead of worrying about my health insurance, or how horrible my floors look, or my stupid tooth, I'm going to focus on things I CAN do. I'm working on a fundraiser for Ukrainian animals who have been left or made homeless because of the war. (More on that later.) I'm traveling to South Africa tonight to give a speech, as well as meet the wonderful people at Hotel Hope Ministries - An amazing charity that helps babies in need and mothers in crisis in South Africa by addressing the root causes of these problems.

I'm fortunate enough to be in a position where I can still use my abilities and my brand for good, no matter how annoying things might be for me personally right now. So that's what I'm going to do. It doesn't mean I'm not going to curse a bit and get frustrated every time I look at my black hole of a living room floor or bite into a sandwich, but I'm not going to dwell on it.

Because in the end, time is going to pass, either way. I might as well be productive while it does.

Some food for thought on this Tuesday.

Much love,

-Peter



Other articles by Peter Shankman


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    Your mental health and your time are closely related. If you're constantly running around complaining that you don't have enough time, that has a negative effect on every aspect of your life. If there's an easy way to fix that, I can't imagine anything in the world more worth the spending of a few extra dollars. read more »
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    Here's my birthday wish for you

    (If we've been communicating for longer than a year, you've received this before. But that said, it's good to reread. It's good for all of us to reread every once in a while. (And I added a new one at #10.)) read more »
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    We don't know how strong we are until we're called on to be that strong. We don't know our power until we stand up to a bully, until we stop caring what others think of us, until we demand better service, until we raise our prices, until we stop allowing ourselves to be taken advantage of. read more »
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  • Resolutions Fail. Rituals Succeed.

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    Best selling author, Peter Shankman, thinks resolutions are the stupidest things in the world. They rarely succeed, because we're a society that values "instant wins," and you just don't get them from resolutions. read more »
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    Skydivers have a bunch of interesting traditions. Specific fist-bumps before exiting the plane to keep us safe. Being hit by a pie after your 100th jump. But one of them is deadly serious. It's called "decision altitude." What is yours? read more »
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  • Never Change to Match Your Surroundings

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