When Life Gives You Lemons, Be Relentless

and make the juice worth the squeeze

Life handed me lemons, so I made lemonade, lemon cake, lemon drops, and I even used the rinds to make lemon art. So the joke is on you, life…

- Emilyann Allen

That’s the spirit, right?

At least I think so.

Although there’s no denying that there have been times I’ve seen a lovely glass pitcher of fresh-squeezed lemonade, with crackling ice floating in it, garnished with juicy, vibrant, slices of lemons, and thought, “I should do that sometime…but it seems like a lot of work.”

Yes. It’s a lot of work for sure, and if there ever was a time when the juice isn’t worth the squeeze, it’s when you’re making lemonade.

That is if you’re squeezing the lemons by hand.

Invest in a juicer? Now you’re talkin’.

Let’s face it, the good things in life aren’t usually handed to us on a silver platter, perfectly prepared and ready to enjoy.

Usually, they appear like lemons; You have no idea what to do with them, and since you didn’t plan on getting them, now you have a bowl of lemons sitting there silently anticipating what you’re going to do next.

Maybe even rotting until they get thrown in the trash.

My advice?

Be relentless.

Whether we’re distracted by our whirlwind lives, busier than we need to be, or simply have tunnel vision, we can deny or avoid the opportunities we’re handed just because they aren’t exactly what we were expecting.

The lemons.

They don’t look like they belong or fit in with our plans right now, which is annoying, so we just let them rot away, and write them off as just another nuisance.

Here are some strategies to make sure you don’t squander away possible opportunities (lemons) placed in front of you, and instead have the awareness to dive all in and get scrappy.

Take off the blinders

You might not know what to do with an unexpected circumstance because you’re focused on what’s right in front of you, and any deviation is annoying.

When you think you have each day all figured out, down to the hour, you essentially have blinders on.

There’s no room for spontenaity and creativity and definitely no chance you’ll have the awareness to realize that you could be missing something special.

Resist having tunnel vision in your life and really seek to see the bigger picture because you never know when life is going to give you lemons.

Revisit your goals often

When you set goals, you may carefully craft the specific steps you need to get there. That’s fine.

But if you’re fixated on the same exact goal for years, you’re blocking out all possible adaptations or modifications that might actually make things better.

Rather than cementing in specific goals, revisit where you are often to make sure you’re still marching in the right direction for where you are now.

Circumstances in life change quickly, and checking in frequently to assess how things are evolving will lessen the odds that you’ll miss an opportunity or alternate path that may present itself.

Take clarity breaks

You’re a busy person. Chaotic life can make you want to run away and hide or just bury your head in the sand.

When those moments of overload happen, you’re closed for business. Nothing new can come in, no inspired thoughts or actions can happen, and when an opportunity presents itself, you’ll shoo it away.

Instead, take regular clarity breaks to allow yourself the space for mindful consideration of the unexpected, and increase the likelihood that you’ll at least give those lemons a second look.

Ask for advice from a trusted friend

Let’s say the unexpected lands on you like a ton of bricks, completely out of the blue.

The timing is bad, it doesn’t fit into the plan, but you’re doing your best to pay attention and see if it’s something that just might be good.

In times like this, when none of it makes sense, run it by a trusted friend or loved one.

An outsider can often see a situation more objectively and not have the urge to deny it altogether or “make it fit” into your current plans, but rather see it for the new option it may present.

Try not to give the back story on why you don’t think it makes sense so you can get the real outsider's opinion, unaffected by your input.

This different point of view might keep you from chucking the whole thing and help you see it in a different light.

Ditch self-doubt and negative talk

As I said, making lemonade is tedious and not that fun when you don’t have a way to make it easier.

When things are a little fussy and challenge the norm, it’s easy to let yourself go into self-doubt and talk yourself out of taking a shot.

After all, there have been plenty of times you’ve tried things and they didn’t work, so why get off track with a distraction when you have a sure-fire plan?

Because life has a sense of humor, and just when you think you’re sailing smoothly, prevailing winds come whipping through and remind you that you actually don’t always get to decide the direction you’re going to go.

You’re capable of great things, and the past is no indication of your future, so go with the flow, baby.

Be flexible

The absolute key to being a lemonade maker in life is to be flexible. Things change out of the blue, some you can control and others you can’t.

Either way, things happen and the reality is you have to adapt.

That doesn’t always mean an easy pivot, it means being open to putting all your efforts into something new. Even the unexpected things that you weren’t prepared for.

If you resist, give up, and throw up your hands just because you didn’t get your way, you could be denying yourself something amazing.

Stay fluid and commit to going all in, however things play out.

Being relentless in the face of the unexpected isn’t just admirable, it could be the key to your life going in a new, and many times better, direction.

Learning to tolerate the discomfort and opening yourself up to any and all options can unlock a wealth of opportunities and lead you to a happier place.

Throw caution to the wind, and squeeze.

🎉 P.S. More midlife wisdom on 🔥 🎧 The Badass Midlife Podcast 🎧 🔥

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