Summary

The article provides strategies for maintaining productivity despite facing a challenging day.

Abstract

The author shares personal experiences of a particularly difficult morning, including family and professional setbacks, to illustrate the inevitability of bad days. Despite these challenges, the author emphasizes the importance of accepting the day's circumstances, engaging in self-care, completing less urgent tasks, cleaning, and going for a walk to maintain productivity and prevent a downward spiral into depression. The article suggests that by finding small wins and taking care of oneself, it's possible to mitigate the impact of a bad day on overall goals and well-being.

Opinions

The author believes that acknowledging a bad day is the first step towards managing it effectively.
There is an opinion that self-care, such as extra rest or a relaxing activity, is crucial during tough times.
The author suggests that focusing on less demanding tasks can still lead to meaningful progress when more challenging tasks seem unmanageable.
Cleaning is seen as a therapeutic activity that can help calm the mind and restore a sense of control.
Walking is recommended as an accessible form of exercise that can help reset emotions and clear the head.
The author conveys that taking proactive steps during a bad day can prevent it from turning into a series of unproductive days.

How to Still Be Productive When You’re Having a Bad Day

Bad days happen. Here’s how to still get shit done.

So, I had a day that looked something like this:

I came to the realization that I’m going to have to send my 15-year-old-daughter to live with her father.

She, like many teenage girls before her, has decided that I am public enemy number one, and she is not going to do a damn thing I tell her to do.

The 15-Minute Marketing Plan That Gets Results

You’ve already spent all your time writing the thing; you don’t want to spend all of your time marketing it too.

medium.com

Ever.

From this point forward.

Amen.

My youngest little sister, who I have custody of, has also decided I’m public enemy number one, but for different reasons.

Her biological parents are trifling.

Her father stood her up over the weekend.

Her bio mom acts like she doesn’t exist.

And some of her “friends” were picking on her saying her parents didn’t want her. Apparently, all of this is my fault.

I’m the one taking care of her, but hey, I clearly made her bio parents suck.

She’s also 15.

Then, I woke up, and 30 to 40 fans had disappeared from my Medium account.

Poof gone.

No idea why.

However, it meant my account that would have normally had at least 30 to 40 fans by that point in the day was at 5.

Ouch.

It was all around a shit morning.

Now old me would have curled up in a ball, said fuck it all, and then proceeded to turn one bad day into a week’s worth of bad days.

But I’ve done that enough over my (almost) 40 years that I know it is not the best way to handle anything and just leads to more bad days, more depression, more eating, and a bigger ass than I already have.

So I decided to be proactive about my bad day even if it meant I wasn’t going to have the day I originally planned for.

Here’s how you can turn your own shit day into something that is still shitty but not unproductive:

1. Accept that it’s not going to be the day you planned

The first thing you have to do is accept that it’s not going to be the day you want or originally planned for.

I had four articles lined up to write this day.

I’m lucky that one is getting done, and that’s okay.

It means I still managed to get some writing done, and small steps all lead up to the same big goal. You have to find your win as well.

Whether it is writing an article, checking one thing off your to-do list or completing a step on your big project, whatever you can do to give yourself a win for the day will go a long way to making your crap day a little less crappy.

2. Take some time for self

I needed a break after the drama of two teenagers declaring I’m the worst parent/guardian ever.

So, I went back to bed.

I’m off my natural sleep schedule anyway because my daughter has to be up at 5 am for school, so instead of trying to fight through the morning with more coffee, I just went back to bed and got some extra rest.

Maybe you can’t go back to bed, but you can find some time for self-care.

Perhaps it’s an extra-long bath to begin your day or an afternoon trip to the nail salon, or having a really great lunch with a Scandal sized glass of wine.

Whatever it is, you need to find some way to give yourself some love and needed attention during a day where everyone (or everything) is making you feel bad.

The better you feel the easier it is to get back in the swing of things and get your productivity back on track.

3. Complete less urgent, yet still important tasks

I always feel like I’m behind on my marketing efforts, and my content calendar isn’t as fleshed out as it should be.

Since writing uses more higher brain power than I possessed at the time, it was a good time to organize my content calendar and beef up my marketing efforts.

I completed work that is easy to let go of or put off when you’re focused on writing content but is still very important to your overall goals. If you have important but simple tasks that are lingering, a bad day is a good time to get them done.

You may not be in a good mood, but simple tasks add up to big wins over time making your bad day a more productive one overall.

4. Clean up

The repetition of cleaning helps to calm me down.

I don’t like to clean, but when I’m feeling depressed on overwhelmed, doing laundry or sweeping or any sort of cleaning can go a long way to settling my brain and getting me to a state of peace so I can better address the situation.

If you’re like me and a bit of a slob, your house is often in a constant state of disarray. Use your bad day to get some needed cleaning done around the house, and once your day is better, you’ll be able to enjoy it in neat(er) surroundings.

5. Go for a walk

Walking is the ultimate clear your head activity.

If you’re not one for intense workouts or just don’t have time to make it to the gym, a walk around the neighborhood will do wonders to recalibrate your being and get you back to a place where your emotions aren’t running wild.

I was so ticked that I easily walked two miles just by circling the cul-de-sac.

Walking does wonders to reset your emotions and help get your day back on track while also giving you needed exercise for the day.

So put on your walking shoes and go for a stroll. Your mind, your body and your to-do list will thank you for it later.

Final thoughts

Bad days happen.

They are apart of life. You can’t avoid them, but you can lessen their impact on your overall goals and productivity.

One bad day doesn’t have to turn into several and — using the above tips — you can get your productivity back on track so you’ll be back to working towards your goals in no time.