I get up every morning and it’s going to be a great day. You never know when it’s going to be over so I refuse to have a bad day! – Paul Henderson
No matter how Zen we are, we all have bad days, when we just get up on the wrong side of the bed. Some of us have them more, some of us have them less, but we all experience them.
There is no need to suffer through a bad day, and just wait for it to end; there are so many little things we can do to help ourselves and also the people around us.
I used to get up and feel bad every day. Just all around depressed and anxious about life, and all I wanted to do when I got up was to go back to sleep. I didn’t realize all that I could have done to make my days better.
Let’s go through an average day together and see how we can turn bad days around:
Getting Up
When we get up on a bad day, our minds can be filled with negative thoughts even before we open our eyes. Meditation is a wonderful way to start any day, but especially bad days.
If you don’t have time in the morning to meditate for an extended period of time, you can just close your eyes as you sit on the side of your bed and take three deep breaths. Calming your body as you breathe in and smiling as you breathe out. Starting your day by immediately emptying your mind from the negative thoughts and appreciating the new day instead can transform your whole day.
Getting Ready
Getting ourselves ready for the day ahead should be a peaceful time. It is worth it to get up a little earlier in order to have more time to relax in the mornings before you head out the door.
Enjoy the water as you take a shower, and let it refresh you for your day. Find joy in the fact that you have to opportunity to put on clean and comfortable clothing. All in all, be mindful of what you are doing and appreciate what you have instead of feeling sorry for yourself and wanting more. If you are content and grateful, it is impossible to feel bad.
Breakfast and Other Meals
Practicing mindfulness throughout the day can greatly improve its quality. By seeing the bigger picture and appreciating the moment, we recognize that the present moment is always perfect, therefore there is no need to feel bad.
When eating a meal, we can think about all the people who made that meal possible. We can be grateful for it, savoring every bite and finding joy in the wonderful taste of food. Finding beauty and miracles in everyday activities is easy if we really look.
Out in The World
I wrote a whole article about how helping others helps us as well. It is a very true fact, which can be psychologically proven, so when you go outside, smile at strangers, compliment them, wish everyone you talk to a good day, and generally be as kind as you can be, because you are not simply making the world a better place, you are helping yourself as well.
If you come in contact with a stressed out and negative person, be kind to them. By reacting negatively to someone else, you are just multiplying the negativity, which is not good for anybody, and you would only be making your bad day worse. Encountering a negative person will not make your bad day worse – your reaction to that person can make your day worse, keep that in mind.
Kindness and understanding will always help you in turning a bad day around.
Back Home
Once you are back home, don’t waste your time in front of the computer. Spend some quality time with your family or with yourself if you live alone. Appreciate the time you have, don’t just want the day to end, there is so much beauty to be lived.
Spending time on your hobbies is very important as well. We can easily get lost in our busy lives and forget what our passions are. Do you remember writing stories as a child? Or drawing pictures? You should do more of your heart’s passion, it lifts up the soul and helps us remember who we really are.
Bed Time
Go to bed at a reasonable time in order to be refreshed the next day. Count back 8 hours from the time you will wake up and make sure that you’re sleeping by then.
Before bed, it’s important to let go of the day and relax. A little yoga or a warm bath can help you with that, but what I truly recommend is meditation. You’re not going anywhere, so you definitely have time before bed to meditate.
Just sit or lie down in your bed, put in some meditation music, close your eyes and concentrate on your breath. Let go of everything in your mind and let yourself enjoy the serenity of the moment. You will fall asleep easily after meditation, and you will have a nice and deep sleep, making you refreshed and ready for the next day.
I remember being so negative about most days that the bad days slowly started to become a bad life. What I had to realize was that my life was not out of my hands. We make our own destinies by the way we choose to think and act.
Be kind to others and learn to relax in every situation. Life is not as serious as you might think. We create our own bad days and it’s up to us to turn them around.
