Hey there buddies! This blog post is completely unplanned, but there are some things that I have been feeling pretty strongly lately, and I wanted to share them with you in case any of you need to hear this as well.

I think that a lot of who we are is a reflection of the people we spend time with and the thoughts and phrases that we incorporate into our day to day lives. I am one of those obnoxious people who was born a super positive person, was raised by a super positive person, and have pretty much been that way 90% of my life for my whole life. However, don’t for one second think that I haven’t fallen into the “I’m not good enough”, “Nobody cares”, or “I can’t do that” mindset. This time of year, when we are ready for the warmer season, the brighter sun and the colorful flowers; but mother nature just isn’t quite ready to oblige, it can be easy to slide into a slump of negativity and lack of motivation. I know because I am currently pulling myself out of one.

Let me quickly explain WHY I think I found myself in this slump. My fiancé and I are two people who like to really go after what we want in life. I don’t know why things always seem to happen this way, but we have about a million and one things going on at the moment; here is a list of just a few:
1) planning our wedding
2) planning our 2 week honeymoon to Bali (I know, world’s smallest violin)
3) constructing and finishing our vacation rental cabin and everything associated with that.
4) Building a 20 foot by 14 foot chicken coop
5) Raising 50 chicks in our guest bedroom (you guys; THE SMELL!)
6) Dealing with our livestock guardian dog post spay (we are on day 7 right now people! Halfway to the end of cone livin’)

“What’s so bad about any of those things?” you might ask. Absolutely nothing! And to me, that’s half the point. Sometimes lots of things, even if they are all good things, can still lead to a negative mindset; and that’s okay from time to time!

I could keep going on; but my list of “to do’s” is not what this post is about. It’s about getting your self through those days and weeks where it feels like you may never come out on the other side. Here are a few things I have been doing lately to pull myself out of the end of winter slump and channel that energy in a more positive way.

1) Surround yourself with people who lift you up. You do not literally have to sit in a room of people that are holding you up in the air (though that sounds amazing, and if you find a place where you can do that, invite me please!). I live in a town of 400 people in the middle of nowhere Montana, so that option is not one that is readily available to me. What I mean by this is, be selective of the people you interact with, particularly when you are going through those especially difficult times, go out of your way to set up phone (or skype or facetime) dates with the ones who are your biggest cheerleaders. My 5 best friends live in different states than me, and when I’m going through a funk, I feel closer to them than my neighbor down the road because I reach out to them for their support and encouragement and they are 110% all in for me.

2) CHANGE YOUR MINDSET. This may be the hardest one of all, because when you hit a slump, or depression or whatever you want to call it; a large portion of that IS your mindset. I find things like sitting outside at lunch on a sunny day, or buying a bouquet of flowers when it’s grey and yuck outside often reset my brain enough that I can start thinking more positively. This is something I have had to work extremely hard at over the years. Everything I do is done with passion, so you better bet that when I’m grumpy I am gosh darn passionate about it! But you will be AMAZED what a big difference re-training your brain to think positively will do during a difficult time.

3) Remember that you are the only you! There is no one else on the planet who is exactly like you. And that notion alone should make you smile. God, or the universe or whatever you believe in, looked at you and decided you were necessary to this world. Never forget that, and never let someone else snuff out that light. Anyone who tries to do so is either jealous of you or a genuinely mean person and we don’t have time for them in our circle of happy!
Long story short buddies, in a world where it is easy to look at everyone’s perfect Instagram feed, Facebook post, or Youtube channel, know that life is perfectly imperfect. Nobody has a good day every day, but there is a little bit of good in every day.

4) Don’t let ANYONE’S opinions of what you “should” be doing, keep you from doing what you love or want to do. If I had a dollar for every time someone giggled, glanced sideways, or awkwardly stared when I told them it’s my 2 year plan to create and monetize a poultry farm, vacation rental and blog I’d be able to quit my 8-5 tomorrow! This goes back to number 3 where YOU are the only you. And maybe that means your specific vision is the only vision like it out there; that doesn’t mean that it’s any less genius of a vision than anyone else’s. Think about Chip and Jo, they started with a little antique shop and quick flip business and now they own a retail store, realty company, bakery, restaurant and who knows what else. “The sky is the limit” is a real thing, and the sooner you step outside of your aunt’s “your blog is cute, but how is your real job?” mindset, the closer you get to achieving your goals. And then when you achieve those goals, double them, triple them! KEEP GOING GIRL! You. Got. This.

Anyway, hopefully you didn’t read this entire post and think “this chick is totally insane”. If you found this at all helpful, inspiring or even if it just brought a smile to your face…could you do one favor for me? When you’re walking down the hall at work or standing in the grocery store check out line, or at the gas pump day-dreaming about being anywhere else; find someone and give them a compliment, even if it’s just “I love your jacket!”; you never know what that person has been through and you could be the one good thing in their no good, very bad day.

Have you had a day, week or time frame where you felt down about things? How did you learn to deal with it? Let me know in the comments below!