Have you ever had an off day? You know, one of those days that you just could not get going? You were not productive. You questioned your purpose in life. Have you ever just felt like a total disgrace?

I have felt that way before. A few months ago, I spoke to a group and I must admit I was off my game. I did not connect well with the group. My energy was low. And I did not prepare like I usually do. The response from the presentation was not good.

So what do you do in that situation?

You can either have a pity party. Or you can get back up and do better.

I am sad to say that initially I had a pity party. This horrible party lasted a couple weeks as I questioned my purpose. During those few weeks I was not productive at all. They were wasted weeks. I had days where I didn’t even want to get out of bed.

Not only did I feel like a total disgrace, I became a total disgrace. Not because of the failure of the poor presentation. I was a total disgrace because of how I dealt with a little adversity.

You see we all make mistakes. We all fail. We should judge ourselves not on our failures, but on how we respond. In my case, my response was an absolute total disgrace.

A few weeks later, I had another presentation and this time I over-prepared. I added to my content. I watched my favorite movie, Rocky to pump me up. The presentation went well and my energy was back. I was back. The weeks and months that have followed have been productive and filled with energy.

What did I learn?

• Always be prepared – I wasted a couple weeks because I failed to perform up to my expectations. I take responsibility for that. I should have been more prepared.
• If you do struggle, make a mistake or fail you have to put it behind you a move on – I wallowed for weeks. I had a pity party. That was not the solution.
• Protect your energy – People talk a lot about time management, but energy management is more important. My low energy led to a bad presentation, which lowered my energy even more.
• Know your purpose – Understanding why I do what I do and understanding what I love is what got me out of my funk. Know your purpose and spend as much time as possible doing things that align with it.

Have you ever experienced something like I did?

Do you ever feel like a total disgrace?

How have you avoided the pity party?

How have you gotten back on track?