5 REMINDERS FOR HANDLING LIFE’S CHALLENGES

In our everyday life, when we are dealing with obligations and duties, it’s not uncommon to be stressed and lose our cool. At such moments, some daily reminders in the form of self-talk will help you to flow with every situation gracefully.

Life’s circumstances are unpredictable, and a small occurrence may affect our state of mind. We keep on questioning the how’s, why’s, what’s, and when’s.

There have been moments of indecisiveness, discomfort, conflict, and confusion in my life. Of course, we don’t have a life manual that gives us instructions to deal with all kinds of situations. Circumstances are exclusive to individual experiences.

I could have handled situations better with a few reminders that I’m writing about.

These reminders can be used in the form of affirmations, or you can write them down in your journal to read them every morning.

When you internalize these reminders, you’re likely to embrace whatever comes your way and deal with it.

Reminder #1 “I choose to focus only on things that are in my control”

This is a simple reminder that will change your state of mind from being agitated and wanting to control every situation to a calmer version of yourself.

Only our thoughts and actions are in our control, not anything else. Even the consequences of the actions are not in our control.

The things that you are in control of are:

• Taking action for your goals
• Your present moment
• Your habits
• Your role in a relationship (family, friends, colleagues)
• Taking care of yourself
• Your response in any situation
• What you think of yourself

Sometimes, we are too focused on things out of our control, which leads to a trigger of negative thoughts and emotions.

When you remind yourself to focus on things that are in your control, you will save yourself from a lot of stress.

Reminder #2 “I believe in the power of acceptance”

When you move in life with the mindset of acceptance, you tend to waste less time complaining about how things should be or shouldn’t be. But acceptance is not equal to tolerance.

Being accepting doesn’t mean you tolerate when people are unfair or abusive towards you. It means that you accept reality and take actionable steps to deal with it.

Many times, we are affected by situations simply because we don’t want reality to be as it is. But accepting reality will help you navigate the problems and look for solutions.

Whether it’s a rejection, heartbreak, failure, or the loss of someone precious, acknowledging the reality of the situation is the first step of accepting it.

Some things you can work on accepting are:

• Accept that everything in life is temporary.
• Accept both your strengths and weaknesses.
• Accept that people make mistakes.
• Accept that people have the right to say no.
• Accept the past and the unpredictability of the future.

Deepak Chopra calls it the Law of Least Effort. Being accepting of people and situations has helped me look at situations from different angles.

It takes some effort and conscious intention to develop an attitude of acceptance. But once you internalize it, you become calmer and ready to take on every challenge with ease.

Reminder #3 “I will not allow the fear of judgment to stop me from reaching for my goals”

Many aspirations and dreams do not materialize simply due to the fear of judgment. People have much to say whether you pursue or don’t pursue your goals.

People’s judgment is the last thing you should be worried about. As the first reminder says, we are only in control of our actions and nothing about what others think, say, or do is in our control.

I don’t mean to stop people from judging you, that’s not possible. The least you can do is not allow those judgments to get to you.

If you fear what people will think, you’re likely to miss opportunities. It’s impossible to please everyone.

When I decided to quit Science and pursue BA in Sociology, my mother was really concerned about what people would think. This also caused a lot of tension and conflict at home.

Just the need to be the perfect version in the eyes of people could have ruined my life and career. I did not listen to my mother or the judgments made by people. Now, I’m pursuing a Ph.D. in Sociology and I love to teach. My life trajectory would have been completely different had I held myself back just because of the fear of being judged. 

Why would you miss an opportunity for people’s opinions who would spend just a minute or two judging it? As long as it matters for your growth and fulfillment, remind yourself to skip the fear of people’s judgments.

Reminder #4 “I am ready for everything that comes my way”

10 years back, when I was in college, I faced my first setback. I was so afraid of facing exams and the stress that came with it was unbearable that I decided to quit Science. I talked about this in my first introductory post.

This fear of exams stayed with me for years. I remember an incident that took place on the day of my Viva during my Master’s course in Kolkata.

I was really nervous to face the interviewer even though I had fully prepared for it. On the way to the university, the rickshaw driver happened to share a small incident of his life. I never had conversations with rickshaw drivers, but that day, out of the blue he started narrating the story.

He talked about the Tsunami in 2004 and how he faced the natural calamity. He survived and also helped rescue many others in the tragic incident in the Andamans. I don’t fully remember the conversation but I do remember the lesson I learned from it.

I thought that the exam/viva I was afraid of was less challenging in comparison to the people who fight life-threatening situations. It helped me calm myself down.

I consider the narrator and the narrative a message from the universe. Since then, I have practiced reminding myself that every situation that comes up can be dealt with. Fearing it will only affect my confidence and potential.

Remind yourself to be ready for everything that may come up. We cannot foresee the future; we can just brace ourselves for all the good times and the tough times.

Reminder #5 “Everything has a way of working out”

Lastly, this reminder that everything works out will give a sense of calm about the future. In times of stress and uncertainty, this statement reminds us that nothing is permanent.

Always reassure yourself to believe that eventually every challenge in life can be resolved. The most important lessons in life are learned through challenging experiences.

Remember that not everything will work out the way you have planned, but everything does work out. On reflecting on the past few years of my life, the problems that seemed so big then seem trivial now and things have worked out.

I would like to add that these reminders may not be the solution to your problems, but they will guide you and help you stay centered and deal with life’s challenges.

We can all do our best in growing through life’s challenges. Even if we fall, let us pledge to stand back up and handle everything that comes upon us.

You got this!!!!!!!