Recently I ended up inside my own episode of the Twilight Zone…
Where everything that could go wrong, DID!
I’d just finished teaching a live Zoom class.
And was feeling pretty darn good.
When disaster struck.
Ok…maybe ‘disaster’ is a slight exaggeration.
But everything DID go sideways pretty darn fast.
Remember my exploding potato story from my last blog?
Well it was like that. Only worse.
One minute I was coasting along, on my post-Zoom-class high.
The next, tumbling down a dark rabbit hole.
Trying to fix a Zoom recording error I’d made. And quickly get the replay out to everyone as promised.
Cuz when I say I’m gonna do something…I’m gonna do it.
But here’s the problem with that.
While I may be a bit of a computer nerd, I’m really not that techy!
#zoomchallenged 🙈🙊🙉
And this fix was waaaaay over my head.
What should’ve taken 60 min to fix, ended up taking over 24 hrs.
During which time I experienced every known technical glitch imaginable!
- Frozen computer screen? Check!
- Server’s busy…come back later? Check!
- File not found. File not supported. File too big to upload? Check! Check! Check!
Grrrrrrr….
I started to wonder if it was some sort of cosmic joke.
(Hellooooo Mercury in retrograde, are you messing with me again?)
Because both my computer AND phone seemed possessed!
I was stuck in overwhelm. And my nerves were fried.
You get the picture. I was in total tech-hell.
So why am I telling you all this?
(Besides the need to vent my frustration?)
Because when everything goes wrong in life, here’s what I learned…
The hard way.
(Which is what I hope I can help you avoid.)
💗 1. Press pause:
The moment I started banging my head against my computer & wailing “why Universe, whyyyyy?” I shoulda known something needed to shift.
That I needed to pause. Take a deep breath.
And figure out what I reaaaaally needed in that moment.
More time? A proper food break? A walk in nature?
To ask for help?
Anything besides getting stuck in my perfectionistic tendencies.
And sitting there bleary-eyed in front of my computer til 2am!
So remember, when everything goes wrong in your world…
And you’re whipping yourself into a frenzy.
And trying to do everything for everyone.
There’s no pot of gold at the end of it.
Only sheer exhaustion and burnout.
And maybe a little resentment thrown in for good measure.
In other words…freaking out is NOT worth it.
Instead pause, breathe and notice what’s going on for you.
Figure out what you need.
To replenish your energy. And take care of your soul.
And then go do that.
So you can come back later. With fresh (and rested) eyes.
💗 2. Count yourself in:
It’s amazing how far we’ll go to deliver what we’ve promised.
But here’s the downside of that.
Sometimes we over-deliver, in order to meet the needs of others.
And we forget to count ourselves in to the mix.
By the time I got the whole techy mess sorted out I was flat out EXHAUSTED.
Sure, I got my file uploaded and the email sent.
But I kinda threw myself under the bus along the way.
Which is ironic, considering I spend so much time reminding other women to slow down and care for themselves too. 🤦
(Yup. No mistakes. We teach what we need to learn!)
So if and when everything goes wrong for you the next time…
And you’re feeling frazzled (like I was), please, for the love of Pete…
Take a moment to pause and breathe.
And notice what you need. To take care of yourself.
To take care of your soul.
And then promise me, you’ll go do it.
Cuz you (and your sanity) matter, too.
Kerry xo
P.S. If you tend to push yourself too hard — especially when everything goes wrong — my free guide 10 Simple Ways to Be Kinder to Yourself can help. It’s filled with gentle, practical ways to soothe self-criticism and treat yourself with the same compassion you give everyone else. Get your free copy here.