Losing someone or something you care about and have invested so much in can be one of the worst things to happen in life. Whether you’re going through a breakup or dealing with the death of a family member or business, moving on after loss is not easy. For some people it takes forever to heal. But, with a little effort, it is possible to move forward with your life.
With the misfortunes that have rocked the world today, from the global pandemic to bomb blasts, Typhoons, wildfires, violence and unrest among others the world is hurting. The loss is massive. How can we bounce back?
Let the emotions flow:
Express it. Don’t bottle it all up! Loss is painful, scary, and upsetting especially when you’ve done all you can to make sure that thing or person succeeds. Unexpressed grief can lead to complications such as depression, anxiety, substance abuse, and other health problems. For real healing to start it is necessary to face your grief and actively deal with it. So let it all out — cry, groan, and vent as much as you need to. It’s way more healthier than holding it all in.
Rely on people who you know care about you the most:
You may want to lock yourself in with no intentions of ever returning to polite society again. Although you could do this for a while (some experts say it helps with personal reflection), you should eventually let people back into your life. No one can live in isolation. A friend, a confidant, a spiritual leader or anyone else can help you along the journey of healing. Allow them share in your sorrow.
If your business is involved, here are a few things that could help;
Be very deliberate about your self-talk:
It is very tempting to think and say you’re so far behind now that you’ll never get to the level you were before the loss. Instead of letting that inner dialogue run the show, take note of it. It might slip off your mouth sometimes but when you realise it, say what you want to see. It is said that negative self-talk is detrimental to your stress management and even your health and we know that at this point, you’re in a under a lot of stress.
Ask for and receive support:
Every business owner needs a network of people to trust and call on when the going gets tough. This is essential to success. If you don’t have such already, focus on putting together a tribe of people who have you in mind, not the kind with a competitive mindset. Don’t be shy to reach out and get support. Also, find and reach out to relief packages being made available to business owner in trying times.
Don’t leave your customers wondering:
If the failure affected your customers, you need to contact them as soon as possible to keep them up to date with your attempts to fix the situation. That is the part of quality customer service every reputable company has to provide. Try your best to make sure that your clients still receive the services they paid for despite your performance issues. If you can’t give them an alternative with the hope that you’ll get back on track.
Take some time off:
Sometimes there is the need to step away from the daily routine to gain perspective. Take a day off work. Give yourself a break from all of the noise and stresss and then get back in the game. You might see something different.
Finally, when it comes to failure or loss, it is important to remember that you are not alone. Everyone will reach a low point in their life (even in business) at some point. How you handle these low points will have a direct correlation to how you bounce back and succeed even better.
Did you recently suffer a loss in any area of your life? How did you bounce back? Go ahead and help someone. Share with us in the comment section.