5 Ways to Get Back Up When You Are Really Down on Yourself

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5 Ways to Get Back Up When You Are Really Down on Yourself

Oprah Winfrey lives the life many dream about. But if you know anything about her you know she had plenty of low times in her life. Sometimes you get knocked off your feet and wonder if you can get back up. When that happens it’s easy to get down on yourself. Here are five ways to get back up:

Throw away the magnifying glass
If you’re down on yourself it’s likely you’ve been looking at your negatives, mistakes, and failures through your mental magnifying glass. Take all your "negatives" out from under the magnifying glass and put them in perspective. You’ll feel better right away.

Be the defense attorney, not the prosecuting attorney
The job of the prosecuting attorney is to make the defendant look "guilty as charged." She does that by presenting the worst things about the defendant without sharing anything that might make him look good. When you’re down on yourself, isn't that what you do? To get back up when you’re down on yourself, you have to be the defense attorney. You have to present a compelling case to convince the jury why they should like you.

Make three lists
Since you’re going to pretend to be the defense attorney, you might as well document your evidence of why your client is to be trusted and respected. Make a list of your strengths and then ask your friends to tell you what they think. Next, make a second list of all your past successes, small or big—and give yourself due credit for them. To get up, congratulate yourself for everything on your second list. Then make a third list—what are your top one to three personal goals that you can give your attention to and take your mind off of what’s been getting you down? Finish that list with your top one to three work/career goals.

Do what makes you happy
When we get discouraged, and especially when we get depressed, we stop doing the things we used to enjoy. We start isolating and stop moving forward. Ask yourself what makes you feel good and then go out and do it. Don’t wait until you feel like it, put it in your schedule and tell a friend you’ll let her know how it went. Telling someone else about your commitment ups the odds you’ll follow through, so don’t isolate yourself, reach out and let someone know what your plan is.

Make someone else happy
You already know that making someone else happy makes you happy as well. Think about something you’ve done for someone else, however small, and play that mental movie of what you did and how good you felt. When you’re feeling down on yourself, your energy is low and one of the fastest ways to boost your energy is to boost someone else’s. Just don’t fall into the trap of making others feel happy without prioritizing your own happiness. Make sure you do what makes you happy and then take that positive energy and share it with others.