THE LIFESTYLE ENTREPRENEUR

Read time - 2 minutes

How I handled a tough week

Was last week a tough week for you?

It was for me, and for pretty much everyone I talked to this week.

It all started with the dreaded daylight savings time, when one hour of difference inexplicably throws off everyone’s moods for at least one day.

In my household that meant an almost 2 year old who slept poorly and woke up early, two adults who subsequently didn’t sleep well, and two teenagers and a 10 year old who woke up grumpy.

Then leading up to election night, a whole country was nervous and anxious - and stayed up too late observing a bizarre and historic election unfold much quicker than any of us expected.

Those on either end of the political spectrum were either dismayed or elated, but I’d guess the majority of the country went to bed with deep uncertainty about where the next four years would take us, regardless of who we voted for.

This made for a tiring, anxious, challenging week for most of us. And we’re all going into the end of year and holiday season with full workloads, deadlines, and activity schedules that leave little time for moping around feeling lazy.

If that feels like your week at all - how did you handle it?

Did you let your external world drive your mood, activities, and coping behaviors? Or did you focus on what you can control and lean into healthy ways of coping?

I did a little of both to be honest.

On the one side here’s a few things I allowed to happen:

• Stayed up late Tuesday reading, scrolling, and taking in the moment

• Stayed up a little later than normal on Thursday because kids were off school on Friday and Alex wanted to finish season 4 of Stranger Things

• Had a couple of drinks throughout the week - I finished a year off alcohol a few weeks ago!! I’ve since enjoyed a few drinks here and there and am planning on going 2 months off all substances leading up to having baby #5

• Ate moderately well but not particularly strict - had a couple mornings at events where I had bagels which I normally wouldn’t have had

On the other side of the self-care spectrum I also did these things:

• Hit my workouts without missing a lifting day

• Had 2 all-day client sessions and covered all my prep to do great work

• Hit my weekly calls goal and weekly content creation goal

• Hit the sauna/cold plunge twice, including friday after my session

• Connected with Marine buddies to celebrate the Marine Corps birthday, hoorah

• Had dinner with all my kids multiple times throughout the week

• Had a great date night with Erin last night

All in all it ended up being a mixed week - not nearly as productive or enjoyable as a 10/10 week, but also not a step backwards in my mental and physical health, work, or family life. There were also a few highlights that created real joy throughout the week.

I’m also going into the weekend a relative neutral - I’m well slept, not feeling behind on my work, with enough energy to spend good time with family and meet my administrative obligations to start next week strong.

Reflecting on each day and week also has a powerful effect on my mood and outlook on life:

• Each morning I took a few minutes to list three things I’m grateful for along with a story from the previous day

• This newsletter is serving as my reflection of the week overall - by listing the things I accomplished and things I did to care for myself I can call it a successful week and learn from how it went, rather than just dwell on uncertain feelings or emotions

With the rest of the weekend ahead of us, we can also always make a decision to improve our states if we want. The rest of the weekend I’m going to exercise my body, fuel it with good food, spend time with good friends and family, and get enough rest to feel ready to crush it next week.

My simple recommendation today? Reflect on how last week went for you - honor how it went, take a few things away to learn from, and celebrate the things you accomplished.

And reach out to a friend and tell them you’re thinking about them and hope they’re well.

Talk to you next week,

Mike