A couple of months ago, you felt that you were at the moment of your lifetime. Then, in a moment of weakness, whether it’s a breakup, an injury, or the death of a loved one, you feel your old bad habits creeping in. It seems as though all your progress so far has been thrown away. You are stuck in a downward spiral of negativity.

If you can relate to this scenario, then you are most familiar with how tough it is to get your life back on track. However, it’s not impossible. Here are 7 ways that will help you to get your life back on track:

Step outside of the person you have been

“Sometimes, you have to step outside of the person you’ve been and remember the person you were meant to be. The person you want to be. The person you are.”

(H.G. Wells)

Have you ever reminisced the moments when you were younger, when you got involved in things you regretted? Perhaps the person you are now is a new, improvised, and better version of you. Or maybe you are already a good enough person, but you want to challenge yourself to be better, to achieve your potential. This requires you to come out of your comfort zone, but it will be worth it. Unleash the latent potential hiding inside you and push the boundaries of what you can achieve.

Be kind to yourself

Does your inner monologue riddle with harsh judgments on yourself? The emotional pain you feel causes you to blame and shame yourself. Oscar Wilder once wrote, “To love oneself is the beginning of a life-long romance.” One way to get your life back on track after a setback is through self-compassion. According to a study by Pogosyan (2018), self-compassion contributes to a wide range of positive outcomes for our well-being, including greater life satisfaction, emotional intelligence, interconnectedness with others, wisdom, curiosity, happiness, and optimism. Therefore, treat yourself with kindness in your thoughts, words, and actions.

Stop regretting and holding on to your past.

When was the last time you felt that you could not move forward? Despite all your efforts, you cannot escape the past. You feel as if there is a heavy burden that holds you back. You ruminate and continue to live in the past. “What if…” is the question that keeps bugging your mind. Instead of being bitter about the things that did not work out, thank them because they paved the way for the good stuff to come.

Trust that you are in the right place at the right time.

“Comparison is the thief of joy.”

(Theodore Roosevelt)

In this age of social media, it is almost impossible to avoid social comparison with other people. We can scroll our social media feed and get a glimpse of someone else’s lived experience. When we compare ourselves with others, we may feel a sense of inferiority or superiority. In response, we hear a tiny voice inside our heads asking: “Why am I not doing what he’s doing?” or “My life is so much better than hers.” If you want to get your life back on track, you need to let go of comparing yourself to others. In actuality, everybody follows their path in life, and there is no one right path for everyone. Trust that you are in the right place at the right time.

Give up letting the judgment of strangers control you.

Do you feel that you run around trying to please everyone with every decision? You feel like you do not tune in to your own needs. Instead, you let other people dictate what you should do with your life. You find yourself taking the extra mile to avoid being negatively judged by others. However, the truth is, you are the one living your life, not others. Perhaps they know what is going on with your life, but they don’t understand what you have been through. When it comes to your life, choosing what’s right for your life is more important than caring about anyone else.

Never underestimate your strength to move forward.

Have you ever doubted your strength to take another step forward? You feel like the hardship you are going through is so big and overwhelming. When you think this way, you can always look back at your life where you have been in the same place. Despite the hardship, you have survived. And this time, you will survive too. Eventually, the difficulty will pass, and you will look back at this time and feel grateful for not giving up.

Change your destructive thinking pattern.

Are you an overthinker? Are you always plagued by anxious and distressing thoughts? Maybe you have made a mistake in your class presentation that causes you to rehash the past over and over again. Perhaps you find yourself having catastrophic predictions. Either way, this overthinking and excessive worrying may hold you back from moving forward in your life. Engaging in a vicious cycle of worrying will get you nowhere. Instead, it robs you of your peace. You can shut down your overthinking by doing things you enjoy and trying something new. Indeed, you may find it challenging to start something new if your mind is flooded with thoughts. Set aside 30 minutes every other day if finding a distraction seems overwhelming. Explore new distractions or experiment with existing ones during this time.

Final thoughts

There are days when you will feel as though you’re making progress, and on other days, you’ll feel as if you have taken two steps backwards. Whatever your situation, it may be worth it at the end of the day to get back on track when you mess up.

REFERENCES

Morin, A. (2016, February 12). What mentally strong people don’t do | Psychology Today. Psychology Today. Retrieved December 20, 2021, from https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/what-mentally-strong-people-dont-do

Pogosyan, M. (2018, February 2). Be kind to yourself. Psychology Today . Retrieved December 20, 2021, from https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/between-cultures/201802/be-kind-yourself

Razzetti, G. (2020, February 13). How to let go of the past. Psychology Today . Retrieved December 20, 2021, from https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/the-adaptive-mind/202002/how-let-go-the-past