Figuring out how to get out of a funk can be an incredibly difficult task without the right guidance. For many years there were times where I would fall into a terrible headspace and truly struggle to shift myself out of it. This headspace, which I refer to as a ‘funk’, made it incredibly hard for me to do anything productive. I was in such a different space than I am now. It’s amazing to look back and think about my life before I learned how to get out of a funk (the focus of my latest podcast). These funks would last anywhere from hours to days to even months. I felt powerless, defeated, and frustrated that I was unable to change my situation. The truth was, I COULD change it –I just didn’t know how. Until now…

Over the course of an intense four-month-long transformational training and personal journey, I learned various tools and techniques that I needed to raise myself up and out of these funks. Not only was I able to reduce the amount of time I spent feeling negative emotions, I was also able to utilize tools to channel them into creativity and purpose.

THREE CORE PRINCIPLES

Before I introduce you to the tools needed to help you learn how to get out of a funk, there are three core principles that you must understand. These principles are essential to your mindset shift and are the first steps toward a funk-less, brighter, happier, you.

1. Be in Ownership 

One of the principles I live my life by is this: “all events are truly neutral”. We choose our personal reality. You are choosing to be in the funk because you are choosing your interpretation of said event or circumstance. The first step of how to get out of a funk? Understanding and acknowledging that you are choosing to be there. Taking ownership of your decision to be in the funk is the first step in actualizing change. You must OWN the funk!

2. Do NOT Resist

Rather than acknowledging and working through our sadness, pain, and depression head-on, we are often tempted to ignore or avoid our feelings in hopes that they will disappear. However, this is simply never the case because what we resist persists. Do not resist your funk. The only way out is through!

So, what does ‘funk resistance’ look like? It looks like running away, distracting ourselves, or numbing out. The sneaky destructive effects of resisting your funk lie in the build-up of emotional and mental pressure that bottling in and suppressing emotions will cause. Practicing acceptance around your emotional situation is absolutely crucial in learning how to get out of a funk.

3. Create Time and Space

If you truly want to experience change and growth, you cannot allow yourself to use the excuse of being ‘too busy’ to work through things. You must create time to sit with yourself, face what’s going on and apply the tools. Shifting your mindset and your energy requires real work – there is no workaround or shortcut. If you are having trouble dedicating time to shifting, then ask yourself how important your happiness really is to you. We make time for what matters to us. So if you are not creating the time and space to free yourself from your unhappiness then you must consider that either a) you don’t really want to shift and be happy or b) your priorities are out of whack! In the podcast episode featured in this blog post, I share a really great tool you can use to get clear on this and reset your alignment and priorities.

THE TOOLS

Now that you understand the three core principles, here are the tools needed to truly help you learn how to get out of a funk:

1. Ask yourself ‘How long do I want to stay here?’  

This is a pattern interrupt that ties directly into the first principle above. It is a very simple tool that you can use immediately when you sense the funk coming on. Simply ask yourself the question “how long do I want to stay in this funk?” And here’s the kicker: whatever you respond with, you must actually keep your word and deliver on it! So be intentional with how you respond because this is a deal you are making between you and you. If you need 15 minutes, give yourself 15 minutes. Maybe you need 3 hours or even the whole day to sit in it. Be honest with yourself and honor your commitment. 

 2. Practice “Per-speck-tive”

Visualize yourself moving away from the perceived cause of your negative emotions, higher and higher into the sky, until it is nothing but a speck. There is a specific dialogue I take you through in the podcast episode that demonstrates how to do this and it is very powerful so I highly recommend you listen – especially if you have trouble getting over things. An alternative way to gain perspective is to walk outside on a clear night and look up at the stars in the sky. When you do this, really take in the fact that we are spinning around on a ball of dirt in the middle of a vast galaxy of trillions of stars. If done correctly, I promise that all of a sudden that “thing” you were so worried about won’t seem that important anymore. 😉 

3. My Personal Favorite: C-F-F-C

Time for some journaling! Get a pen and paper and take yourself through the following steps:

• • C = Concern

    This is the easiest to identify as it is the issue you are presently facing on the surface (i.e., “I won’t hit my income goal for the year”).
    

  • F = Fears

    This is what you are making that specific concern MEAN. What meaning are you attaching to your concern? If that concern ends up actually happening then what? Peel the onion layers back by continuing to ask yourself “then what?” over and over again until you arrive at the real root of the concern (i.e., “I don’t have what it takes” or “I’m not good enough”).
    

  • F = Faith

    Now, you must ask yourself the BIG question: Do I absolutely know with 100% certainty that any of those fears I listed above are 100% true? Of course, the answer should be a big fat NO. In this case, you will write down everything that you do know to be true. Write out all of your 100% truths until you feel 100% complete. Doing this is going to create a massive shift in your energy as you are literally transforming your fear into faith.

  • C = Creation

    Woohoo! You made it to the final step which is the most fun! Here you will give yourself a whole blank sheet of paper to brainstorm what you get to do now that you are operating from a space of pure faith! What do you get to create (i.e., “launch a new program” or “hop on a sales call”, etc)? You will notice your creative juices are really flowing here because you are in such a high vibrational state.

Guys– this process seriously WORKS. I used this exact process when I was experiencing some major doubts about hitting one of my annual income goals and ended up generating almost $19,000 in revenue in one week! I am living, breathing proof that this sh*% works!!

You are so much more powerful than you believe! I know that if you truly commit to applying the above principles and tools, you WILL be able to really master how to out of a funk. These exact tools and principles changed my life and I know that they can do the same for you.

Want a more in-depth breakdown of these rules to help you figure out how to get out of a funk? You can check out the YouTube version of my podcast for a deeper explanation of each principle, tool and some bonus stuff that I cover as well.

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