It Ain’t Over Til It’s Over
As we come up to the holidays and into fourth quarter in the world of business, the morale of those in job transition I work with becomes lower and lower. They focus on the belief that hiring slows down at the end of the year. They think because their education, age, experience, it is hopeless for them to find a new position. These candidates look at their current situation and throw in the towel. It is hopeless. It is over.
Many Americans are feeling this way too. Shocked by the recent election results, they fear their life and their country is over. So many tell me they are in hiding. They feel irreversible changes have already happened to their government, economy, and Bill of Rights. They have accepted the belief that because of one incident, everything has changed, and more significantly, everything is over.
Months ago I watched the movie, The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel. One line from the movie stuck with me and I have been waiting to share it. “Everything will be alright in the end so if it is not alright it is not the end.”
Soak that in.
“Everything will be alright in the end so if it is not alright it is not the end.”
How often in our lives do we think a loss, an accident, a layoff, a disappointment, a divorce, or a death signifies things have changed forever? That there is no going back? That our pain and anguish is our only hope for the future?
Things are not over until we stop breathing, and maybe not even then. Yes, there will be challenging times, but nothing is forever. We need to have the belief that this moment is not the end of the story. That this moment is just that, a moment. Another moment will follow it. And another. Moment by moment, day by day, we move, change, grow. Unless we give up and throw in the towel, we still have a chance for what we want.
Another great line from that movie is “The only real failure is the failure to try, and the measure of success is how we cope with disappointment.” Life is a serious of victories and disappointments, large and small. Life is easy when there is only joy and victories. The true color of who we are appears when there are disappointments and challenges.
Whether you have lost your job, are reeling from the election, or have suffered a personal disappointment, drop the victim card. If things are not as you wanted, planned, or expected, act. Speak up. Take a baby step. Move forward. The only reason things will stay as they are and become “the end” is if you do not move into the future. You have the power to accept things as the end and you have the power to create your own end.
When you are faced with a disappointment, feel free to be angry, sad, upset, or disillusioned. It is important for us to feel and release our emotions. Then accept your power. Look at what you can change or affect that will move you a little closer to what you desire. Take action. Even if the action does not create the result you desire, taking action will keep you from wallowing in emotion and feeling hopeless.
And never lose hope that in the end, everything will be alright.
