Everything was going so great!
You were moving along, making real progress toward your goals…right up until things blew up in your face. Maybe your great relationship turned out to be not so great after all. Or the project at work you’d put your heart and soul into was canceled entirely. Whatever the case, you’re feeling it now, especially as you set out to figure out the next move.
The problem comes in getting back momentum after a significant setback. Think of a train being derailed. There’s a lot of work required to get it back on the tracks before there can be any kind of forward motion again. To continue the analogy, there might be tracks that need to be rebuilt completely. Or a complete refurbishment of the interior of the train car involved in the accident.
In other words, you might have some work to do in order to regain your momentum after a setback. What can you do?
Recognize the Absolute Normalcy of the Situation
OK, stuff happened. Maybe it was you. Perhaps it wasn’t. Either way, you need to realize nothing is a guaranteed success right from the start. There will be setbacks. This is part of life. It’s what you do with them that matters.
Figure Out the Problem…and the Plan
You’re never going to get anywhere if you don’t have a good understanding of what went wrong. Take some time to figure out where things derailed. Was the problem internal? External? A bit of both? Whatever it turns out to be, take note of the difficulty then keep moving. Here is where you start to regain your momentum by refusing to stand still. Go from diagnosis right into the plan for how to fix the problem. What can you do next? Create some action steps while everything is still fresh in your mind.
Analyze the Outcome
Before you jump into action, though, you need to take a moment to evaluate the plan, especially in light of whatever lessons you might have learned from the setback itself. Is the idea viable? Are there some areas still needing some work? Address the issues now rather than later.
Kick it into Gear
Finally, once you’ve worked through the steps, there’s only one thing left to do: ACT. Momentum can’t happen if you’re standing still. You have your plan, and a whole lot of knowledge you didn’t have before. Now’s the time to embrace action and give things a go again.
Don’t let setbacks become stopping points. By working the steps, you’ll find it’s easier to get started again than you thought possible.
