The 4 Steps to getting out of a Funk

Tonight, as I write this, I am putting into practice the very steps I’m about to tell you below to guarantee that it is in fact true. I don’t want to just tell you a bunch of things in hopes that maybe they will work, I want to give you the exact ingredients to create the desired result: Getting out of a funk and into a better mood.

The truth is, I’m in a bit of a funk right now. Not as bad as it was earlier. Now I’m actually able to write some stuff… earlier, all I was able to do was set a foundation by writing down the following:

1. Slow down

2. Do something simple but rewarding

3. Finish that simple something

4. Ask for help

Upon jotting that down on my phone, I then went into a funky-coma where I lay in bed for about an hour just doing nothing. I did it purposefully, slowing down and allowing yourself time to process all of the mental data is incredibly helpful. Without it, you will be hard-pressed to get out of the funk with any ease at all, short of actually falling asleep.

Slowing down gives you time to reflect and figure out what it is that is really bothering you. What did you do, what did someone else do, what set you over the edge to make your mood tank?

While in that state, I was thinking about and figuring out some simple thing I could do, and the answer came back – make popcorn. Before I had the energy to get up and do that though, I was fortunate that a friend of mine came into the room and talked to me to find out what was wrong.

It was in this particular flow that #4 actually came 2nd on the list, thus also alluding to the truth that these steps are non-linear and can happen in whatever order is the most helpful in the moment. With the help of my friend, he helped set a foundation for me to accomplish #2 and 3.

Steps 2 and 3 are really simple – doing something simple and accomplishing something that is easy to do, and rewarding. Something that will give you a feeling of satisfaction to fill you back up.

Some things you might feel compelled to start that would only lead to another unfinished project and more frustration. You want to avoid those at this point, but rather focus your efforts onto something simple that is accomplishable, like beating a level in a game, making some simple food that you enjoy eating, write something short, read a chapter of a book, or watch a show that you enjoy.

Don’t give yourself more work than you need right now, when your batteries are empty it’s best not to strain yourself with lots of hard work.

In a sense, you want to take yourself out of whatever is bothering you and focus on doing that easy thing that you love to build yourself back up so that you can go and solve the bigger overarching problem. And that’s really the direction that these steps take you. They allow your brain some time to calm down and put your focus onto something else, and to solve and resolve something simple with a reward to build your energy back up so that you can feel good again!

Upon good feelings being restored, you can come back to that original problem with a fresh mind that feels good from a simple success, and a new sense of vigor that propels you forward to solve the original problem that made you feel bad in the first place! Or perhaps there is no further action to take on it, and you are instead propelled forward into something new, and something far more exciting.

 

What if you still feel bad about the problem even after all of these steps?

That’s a valid question. Honestly, if all else fails, step 5 is to have a good night sleep. This one might seem like a no brainer, but there’s some important information we need to look at here. It is dangerous to go to sleep in a bad mood.

But why?!

Sleeping angry or grumpy solidifies mental pathways in the brain. If you fall asleep mad at someone or mad at yourself, you will wake up mad at them. It will fuel the angry feeling and make it harder to create a resolution. Not only that, but if you go to sleep with a large uneasy feeling without some form of resolution or calmness, you probably wont sleep very well at all, and just as the first point poses, that will carry on the vibe onto the next day.
However, if you can go through the first 4 steps and feel a little bit better about yourself and the situation at hand, even if you can’t directly solve that problem, you can go to bed feeling good, and you will make THOSE pathways in the brain strenghten, and thus – you will wake up feeling more refreshed, renewed, and ready for something new. It is an honor to be able to share that with you, it fills me up knowing that this information might be of service to someone. Thank you for reading, and I think it’s time for me to go make something new. Toodles! Jordan