Whether something is good or bad usually depends on how you look at it. If you lose your job, that could be seen as a bad thing but it could also be seen as an opportunity. The fact is that events will happen to you and how you handle it will determine what results you will get. You could either choose to see bad things as bad and feel lousy or you can try to look at it at a different angle and figure out what you can learn from the situation.
A simple way to do this is to ask yourself what you can learn from this event. Let’s say you have a side business and it goes under. You can be sad about it or you could figure out what happened and how you can prevent it from happening again. Same thing goes for a failed relationship.
Another example is having someone cut you off on the freeway. Now you can get angry and start cussing at the other driver even though they won’t hear a word you’re saying or you could just be glad that you didn’t get into an accident. It’s all about how you perceive things.
Bad things happen to all of us. Some people are just better at handling them, getting through them, and even benefiting from them. The key is in what you focus on when these bad things happen. Focus on how life is always unfair to you and you’ll likely continue being frustrated. Focus on what’s good about the situation and you’ll likely be able to bounce back up a lot more quickly and get on with your life.
So when the going gets bad and you want to stop feeling lousy, change your perspective. Remember, the only meaning something has is the meaning you give it.
