Rock Bottom - Grasshopper

I think we’ve all heard that some people have to hit rock bottom before they can rise again.  I’m sure you know folks who have made that transition. I’ve certainly seen my share of them.

But, I’m not sure we have to go down that far before we come up, as an old disc jockey used to say, “to where the air is rare.”

I recently heard a voice coach whom I follow on social media say, “Sometimes things have to break in order to have a breakthrough.” I’m sure she wasn’t referring to life situations, but her words certainly fit there.

Noticing that something in life has broken is the first step towards a repair. You don’t have to wait for everything else to fall apart in order to make your comeback.

But, noticing that something is broken takes some real “look in the mirror honesty” and reflection.

Even though some people recognize something is broken, they don’t succeed in righting the ship. The main reason I see is that they fail to take any responsibility for their downfall. Their finger is always pointing outward as they continue to sink downward.

Others are certainly part of our broken story, but solely focusing on their part keeps you from doing your part. You’ll fail to start your upward trajectory as the anchor of blame drags you to the bottom.

Switching metaphors, you can change horses in midstream, you just have to rein in the blame and get a new refrain. Try this one on for size: I played a part in my demise.

All the best,