THE LIFESTYLE ENTREPRENEUR

Read time - 3 minutes

How to handle Off-Days

How often do you have off-days? And how do you handle them when you do?

That’s a recent question I pondered as I had one a few weeks ago.

First, what’s an off-day?

It’s those days where your energy, drive, and focus is way below average. Those three factors are constantly changing throughout the day and week, but off-days are when all three are just, off.

Know what I’m talking about? Ok good. Also - does everyone have off days or is it just me?

I know reading you’re saying yes because you have off-days too - but maybe it’s just me and you?

A quick review of studies, books, and literature around psychology and performance says that yes, everyone has off-days.

How that looks can vary dramatically between people, but we all have them.

Mood and energy swings are a part of the human existence. The first step is accepting that. We’re normal for having off-days.

So what do we do about them? I like to think about our off-days in-terms of 1) frequency, and 2) response.

Frequency

How often we have off-days is the first major factor - having them is normal, but having them too frequently is a signal of depression.

The right frequency of off-days is entirely personal, and also varies depending on life-stages, external circumstances, and lifestyle factors.

I’m currently experiencing off-days roughly once every two weeks. That’s a subjective but somewhat scientific ratio based on tracking how I feel daily.

I haven’t tracked this my whole life (only about 2 years actually), but I’d be willing to bet it has fluctuated somewhere between 2 per week to 1 every 3 weeks in my lifetime.

While there are many external factors, life events, and life stages that will affect this ratio, I want to call out the main lifestyle factors that come to mind that have the biggest impact in my “off-day ratio”.

1. Purpose - Maybe the most important factor in my opinion. Do I have things in life that make me excited to wake up for? Or do I dread getting up because of what I have to work on or spend my day doing?

2. Physical well-being - At a macro level, our general physical wellness plays a massive role in our off-day ratio. Anyone who has injured their back, leg, or experienced a period of being temporarily disabled can attest to how much more frequent off-days will be during these periods.

3. Mental well-being - Our mental health plays a major role in our daily mood and how we experience the world.

4. Wellness practices - Moving downstream a bit, Sleep, nutrition, exercise, movement throughout the day, recovery practices, all have a dramatic impact on us.

5. Focus and mindfulness - Walks, meditation, hobbies, flow sports, all these activities help us feel consistency and flow in our lives.

There are many other areas that affect our overall wellbeing, but those are the five I wanted to highlight.

Response

The above areas will affect our overall frequency, but we’re still going to experience off-days. When we do, what should be done?

Here’s a few things I make sure to do when the off-day rears it’s ugly head:

1. Acceptance - just accepting they're going to happen and it's normal makes them much more pallatable.

2. Movement - If I don't move on an off-day my mood will steadily get worse. I always find a way to get a workout in on these days, even if I need to cancel a meeting for it.

3. 1% better approach - I believe fully in the concept of getting 1% better each day. So on off days I ask myself what's the minimum I can do to get a little better today.

4. Clear priorities - I lay out my quarterly, weekly, and daily priorities, so when in doubt I just have to make progress on the 2-3 things already agreed upon.

5. Talking with friends - I used to internalize and isolate during bad days or periods. I've learned it's better to share my feelings with my closest people. It always lightens my day.

Again, those are just a few tactics to help when the off-day comes, responses should vary because we’re all so individual and unique in how stimulus affects us.

Leaning into off-days

Living a life filled with purpose, adventure, and self care is the primary way to reduce the frequency of off-days in general. That and accepting that they happen to the best of us, is 80% of the battle.

Then, having a few non-negotiable tools when they do occur, allows us to take charge of our days and make them work for us even when things don’t feel as easy or enjoyable as they should.

Hopefully this will help you on your next off-day.

Talk to you next week,

Mike