Things Are Not Always Going to Be Rosy.

Life is not a box of Roses! But surely you already know that to be true.

However, life is a wonderful gift.

Although every day doesn't always feel that way. It is all a part of the human experience. Everybody is going through something.

There's that issue you're dealing with about the job, the house, family, money, relationship, health, and so on. We will never be able to avoid all that life throws at us. But we can learn how to become better at how we handle and manage it all.

Like roses, the thorns and the thistles of life are a part of the unfolding beauty. The thorns are the harsh difficulties we often face.

We may not separate the thorns from the rose, but we can learn how to navigate safely around them so that the prickly thorns don't spoil the potential beauty we all are striving to create.

Here are a few ways we go about handling life when things get tough.

3 Things You Can Start Doing

Perhaps we can take a few moments and look at our situation from a new perspective. Here are at least three practical ways of going about handling difficult situations differently.

Decide What Needs to Change

Take a good look at the person you are right now, in the current situation you are in. How are you taking responsibility? Are you being honest with yourself on what you can do differently?

One of the first steps in handling difficult situations is to not look at the circumstance at all.

“Circumstance does not make the man. It reveals him unto himself.”- James Allen

You must get into the habit of looking at yourself. Not as the person that has necessarily caused the situation.

Instead, take a look at yourself as the solution. You are the way out. The solution abides in you.

Your solution to most challenges will appear in the way you decide to approach the matter. What can you do differently to improve the space you are in?

Think of actions you can take and the changes you can make.

If you begin to see yourself as the first step in the solution, you will no longer blame external people and things you can not control.

Instead, you will learn to see yourself as the one in control of the circumstance itself. When you practice this frame of mind, you will draw up new ways to handle and get through the difficulty - eventually.

Take the time to examine what needs to change within you.

The starting point of change begins inside of your own heart and mind.

Accept the Outcome

Many of the hardships we face come from rejection.

Think about it.

We often reject things that are too hard. Even when we must go through them to accomplish a goal. We reject the lessons and the signs that we are going the wrong way. We reject the warnings and the advice. We reject ourselves, our talents, and our gifts. The more we ignore the things we should do, the more pain we often perpetuate.

However, if you can learn to accept the situation right in front of you, you can begin to receive information on the next step to take. Answers are all around if you can open up yourself to receive them.

Acceptance helps clear our minds from the blind spots, enough for us to see things differently. Until you can see the circumstance in a new way, it will remain difficult to change anything about it.

Acceptance will open up the flow of gratitude and awareness. Awareness is key to receiving the answers you seek.

Start today. Practice the willingness to accept the present outcome of the choices you have made. Accept the actions which have brought you to this point in life. Accept and appreciate where you are in your situation. Then give yourself the permission to receive feedback and suggestions on how to go about it differently. Consciously decide how you will proceed forward each moment of the day to turn things around.

Embrace Healthy Coping Skills

Staying positive does not mean being naive or numb to what is at stake. It's okay to be real about life challenges.

Every moment of your day is not going to always go right and as planned.

Being optimistic does not mean you live in a state of oblivion. But learning new ways to cope, even through the difficulty is an act of maturity that leads to progress and growth.

Develop Postive Ways to Cope

Let me share with you a quick hack on how you can begin improving your coping skills.

Would you like to explore ways to exercise your brain?

Do you want to discover how you can power up your creativity?

Want an simple hack on how to unwind from a stressful day?

It's called the The Brain-Music Connection.

Research has shown that listening to music can reduce anxiety, blood pressure, and pain as well as improve sleep quality, mood, mental alertness, and memory the sounds we hear and know as music travel down our ear canal and create vibration.

The vibrations turn into sensations that stir up our creativity, helps us to relax and remain calm during challenging moments throughout the day.

Give it a Try.

Various music has a different effect on each listener. Find the music that your body, and energy, resonates the most with.

Take time to tune into the sound. If you got a pair of headphones, plug them in, sit back and let the music move through you.

I can't express how much I love ambient music! When I'm feeling tired, stressed, anxious, and overwhelmed, I tune into ambient sounds, and a few minutes in, I can notice my mood begins to shift.

Give it a try. Set aside about 10-20 min.

Be intentional

The next time you are experiencing a mood that you want to change. Turn on relaxing, calming, or cheerful music and watch your attitude shift in a matter of moments. Your emotions will change. You will find yourself in a much better state. It works. It really works!

How do you handle stressful moments? When things ramp up in your day and get challenging?

When you learn how to find healthy ways to cope with unwanted circumstances, you will learn how to get the rough patches of the day in productive new ways.

Don't look for things to be rosy. Instead, make those difficult moments an opportunity to build up emotional mental resistance.

Build positive coping habits and watch your life begin to change.