Crushing Blows

Sometimes we are crushed. Our spouse, our boss, our kid, our friend says something that kicks us in the gut, knocks the wind out of our sails and puts us down for the count. With or without the metaphors, it sucks.

I experienced one of those blows recently at work. Hopes and aspirations that had been building for days were crushed in a four minute telephone conversation. It took me a few hours, but I recovered by remembering a couple things.

1. It wasn't personal. Nothing was said that was insulting or degrading, just disappointing. Sometimes it is personal, but usually when we are crushed, it has more to do with our perception and less to do with the other person really having it out for us. Moving the conversation away from the personal helps soften the blow.
2. It was helpful. The guy on the other end of the phone line had perspective I did not have. His apparent crushing of my dream (albeit one that had only formed recently) was simply a preemption of later disappointment that would follow significantly more work. 

Not all of our disappointments can be salved by these two things, but for me, a surprising number are. Maybe they can be helpful for you as well.