So here's the thing: nothing can really bring me down now. First of all, today's the day they'll deliver my office sofa. And it'll be awesome. Also I just found out IKEA has stacked up on the narrow Billy shelf, meaning, I can go and buy some and build my dream integrated bookcase wall. And it'll be awesome. Finding "bad news" to make lemonade of is really difficult right now.
But! There is one thing! And without this one thing, I would have virtually zero examples to give in this article! So I'm glad! Exclamation mark!
You see, they postponed the reopening of the local pool for another month.
And if you know me, you know I like to swim and water run. Because I'm basically a platypus. (Always be yourself, unless you can be a platypus - then always be a platypus.)
Therefore, not getting to immerse myself in a large body of water for another month is technically bad news. And since it's still winter where I live, swimming in the sea is relatively inconvenient. (Totally not impossible, though.)
Now: how do I turn this piece of "bad" news into good news?
Step 1: ask yourself what you're getting more of with the bad news. For me, it's time. By not being able to use the pool, I have at least an hour and a half of extra time every day that I would otherwise use in driving to the pool, changing clothes, showering, swimming, showering, sitting in the steam room, showering, changing clothes, driving back home.
Step 2: ask yourself what you could do with this thing that you now have more. You have it in abundance, so you might as well use a little bit, or why not all, of it. What could I do with 90 extra minutes a day? Watch a movie? Read an exquisite book? Learn organic chemistry?
Step 3: whatever came to mind first, or whatever raised your pulse, or whatever made you emotional - start doing that.
Suddenly, you have a whole new area in your life, one that excites you and inspires you and energizes you. And it's all thanks to the "bad" news you received.
RK
P.S. If you tried to be a smartass and chose something negative in step 1, like stress, the joke's on you: the technique works for stress too. You see, stress cultivates creativity like nothing else. So if what you're getting more of is stress, use it to compose music or to paint or to write poetry. You'll see what I mean.
Photo by Mikey Harris on Unsplash
