We get used to the dark.

If you are reading this in England, I am not sure if you’ve noticed but the days are getting shorter, I find myself turning the lights on at night and in the morning. But no matter where you are in the world, we all have this amazing ability to get used to the dark.

You know what it’s like, let’s say you are happily cooking away in the kitchen as the evening draws in, you are happily enjoying your time and busying yourself. When you finish preparing the food for the next day you look up and it’s 9pm already and dark outside. You think to yourself ‘it was only daylight a minute ago’.

What happened here with the setting of the sun, is due to the fact it happened gradually and slowly, we never noticed it getting darker, in fact we were able to continue with our cooking unaware.

The same is true for the proverbial darkness in our lives and practice. Normally because the decline in finances, numbers, or even our happiness, happens over such a long period of time, we do not have a memory of the start as a reference point.

Only to find ourselves almost at the rock bottom before we notice, then facing a mountain to climb in order to get ourselves back on track.

That said, you might not feel like you’re there. But if you do feel at rock bottom, either way here is what you can do.

And remember, ‘a shit storm is always coming your way’. Just so much as the good times are too, we must face that reality and be prepared.

Here is what to do.

1.      Meetings and check-ins.
Yes, with yourself as well as your partner and team. It is important to be having weekly check ins to see where you are and how you are doing. This looks like a full team meeting once per week, a check in with yourself as a deliberate exercise weekly, and for those in a relationship, a weekly check in with your partner.
These meetings allow you to take a temperature gauge on where you are, so that you do not blissfully coast downhill.

2.      Take action.
From those meetings and check-ins, set one small but meaningful action to course correct. For instance, if you check in with your partner and they feel distanced from you, book in some couple time. If you check in with your team and the numbers are down, book a screening event or run an advert. Yes, these are simple, but if you do not take immediate action on your observations, it will make the whole course correcting much harder to do.

3.      Enjoy the process.
While these are disciplined actions, they create so much more freedom and enjoyment in your life.

So my question is, where are you heading right now? On the up or down?

Take action today.

With love,

Tom