How to Handle Setbacks

Sometimes when life gets tough with us, we all react differently . . . it may mean resetting our compass or re-examining our goals or staying the course.

When you encounter setbacks, psychologist Nando Pelusi recommends some pointers:

Make A List: If a goal seems unachievable, first describe it to yourself, listing advantages and disadvantages.

Don't Globalize: Keep any defeat in perspective, rather than generalizing it to your entire existence.

Know Your Tendencies: For most of humanity's existence, losing a battle was damaging, perhaps costing a life, so our ancestors ceded even when they didn't want to, in order to survive for another day. Recognize this evolutionary tendency to avoid becoming helpless in adversity.

Seize The Challenge: View frustration as the way to keep getting stronger.

Take The Long View: Defeats are usually temporary and their effects short-lived. "The battle is not the war," she writes.

» Source: The Globe and Mail