Ever since I launched this blog my mailbox has been flooded with one particular question asked in various forms:
What happened to you?
I guess that a radical change in mindset doesn’t come without an impulse very often. You can call it epiphany, a-ha moment or a wake up call. In my case I felt like I literally woke up from a strange state of uncertainty and mental numbness. Awake, in this new reality I had to face the hard news:
I lost my job.
“Oh come on, it’s just a job!” – I heard you 🙂 and you are right – it is just a job but it is not just a job. If it comes all of a sudden, if you are personally invested and committed into it, if you let it define your self-worth then losing it may have a destructive power.
There is a huge stigma around getting fired and/or not being able to find the right job. Through this blog I plan to address these issues in a series of articles but today I wanted to properly introduce the origin of my BetterMe over BitterMe approach – the topic that I have been avoiding.
Below is a screenshot of my personal profile Facebook post from end of 2017 when this idea originated. Symbolism and gestures – that’s my thing.
It became my mantra and I started seeing opportunities to demonstrate the BetterMe in everyday situations. It gave me a new outlook on past, unresolved conflicts and increased my tolerance & empathy in the present. I understood that I will never completely eliminate the BitterMe but now I recognize when it comes, I see where it comes from and I know how to control it.
Hurt leads to bitterness, bitterness to anger, travel too far that road and the way is lost. (Terry Brooks)
So now you know it, phew! My impulse was work-related, it hurt, it was hard but it has been an amazing learning experience and I am grateful for it. I believe that it happened for a reason.
BitterMe or BetterMe? 