5 Ways to Find the Silver Lining

2020, what a dumpster fire, right? Life always takes twists and turns but damn this year has us on a roller coaster of a mess. The pandemic has changed nearly every aspect of life as we know it and politics have pitted family members against family members while racism soared to the point of protests, riots and talks of defunding the police.

My friend, Sara, is a mental health professional and her plate is overflowing with new and old clients alike struggling to deal with the changes thrown at them during this hot garbage mess of a years but she says the key to staying positive and mentally healthy during this time is looking for the silver lining in this disaster of a world.

'How,' that was my first thought and likely yours as well. How do you look for the positive during all of this? My work (essential worker) is crazier than normal, people are scared so they are acting out and taking it out on others, my poor teenage daughter misses school and her friends and is struggling with the online classes (it doesn't help that Zoom boots her off every five minutes) and I am going through a divorce right after my dog passed away.

I laughed at Sara as she tried to convince me that there are positive things in my life and all change isn't bad change even if it is hard to navigate. I rolled my eyes and went about my day but later that night the idea of a silver lining was nagging at me, begging me to try to see the good in the changes in my life so I made a list.

The list was labeled: Good, Bad, Neutral.

I put all the events, big and little, in my recent life into one of these columns and guess what? Good had far more events in it than bad or neutral. That is when I decided to come up with ten ways for others to find their silver lining.

1.) Look for the positive in every situation.

What?! Being lied to and cheated on doesn't have a positive, you might say. Finding out was the beginning of the end of lies and betrayal and the start of your new life where you will heal and decide how you want to live your new life! Yes, it will be difficult but all good things are! If all good things were easy, everyone would be blissfully happy and we know that's not reality.

2.) Celebrate change.

Moving to a new city, losing your job, starting a new job, all of these sound scary and rightly so. It's hard to figure out what to expect with a new situation but the unknown can be exciting! If you've ever listened to Don't Keep Your Day Job, a podcast by Cathy Heller, you know that people have taken bad situations during this pandemic to find what they truly love and do it while making money! Who know you could work doing something you love?

3.) Make the list

Do like I did and make a list of the good, the bad and the neutral events in your life. Most of the time you will see more good things than bad but yes, sometimes the bad side can be overwhelmingly large and it will feel like the world is caving in on you but if you listen to many successful entrepreneur they will say they hit rock bottom before rising to the top. Gordon Ramsey was a pro-soccer player who was hit with a devastating knee injury and that sidelined him for awhile but now he's GORDON FLIPPIN' RAMSEY!

4.) Imagine the possibilities

For some of you this might sound a little hippy dippy but make a vision board. What is a vision board, some of you might ask. A vision board is board, visual or real, that has photos, words, descriptions of how you want your life to be. Pinterest is a great resource for learning how to make a vision board. This will help you visualize what you want your life to be and to stay on track. Look at it every morning and picture yourself living that live. Then you can take the steps needed to make it come true.

5.) Look for a mentor

A mentor can help you find the pot of gold at the end of the rainbow. For some people a mentor could be a life coach and for others a religious leader. For me, my mentors are people who have already achieved what I am looking to achieve. I read Hal Elrod's book, The Miracle Morning, and listen to his podcast and they keep me on track for my goals. Cathy Heller's Don't Keep Your Day Job book and podcast show me other people who have achieved success after the leap of leaving your 9-5 and starting work you love. Lisa A Romano on Youtube has helped me get through my divorce and co-dependency issues. As you can see, mentors don't have to be in person. You can learn from almost anyone.

As Andy Grammer sings "only come rainbows after rain, the sun will always shine again," your dark clouds will move aside and show you a new beautiful start during the darkest of times (hello 2020!). Keep these tips in mind and work on your new beginning and stay positive!