The Power of Hitting Rock Bottom…

• I literally ran out money and my bank balance was ZERO.

• I had to move back to my parent’s house at the age of 31 (kind of embarrassing)

• I couldn’t find a job for 8 months

I had no choice, but to start making some major changes in my life.  I was at a personal low point. The great thing however was there was nowhere to go but up. My blog served as a great personal development tool to make changes in my life and continues to do so today:

• I have a job that I absolutely LOVE

• I’m more financially responsible than I’ve ever been

• I have a great network of contacts/supporters

Let’s look at how you can use the power of hitting rock bottom to your advantage.

How To Take Advantage of Hitting Rock Bottom

• Re-frame the Situation: The first thing you will need to do if you have hit rock bottom is re-frame the situation. In my commencement speech that I wrote on my blog a while back I talked about the distinctions between being spiritually/emotionally broke and financially broke. The latter actually is much easier to recover from if you can conquer the former.  The key is viewing your current situation as an opportunity to take your life to a level far beyond where you are at today. I honestly can say that the 8 failures that have lead to me where I’m at today have been incredibly powerful lessons and I actually am starting to realize that many failures are actually just a part of the path to success.

• Nothing to Lose: The beauty of hitting rock bottom is that you truly have nothing to lose. When you hear stories of homeless people spending their time in libraries and filling their minds with knowledge to eventually become millionaires, it makes you realize that you have tremendous power to change your life if you can just tap into it. The beauty of having nothing to lose is that it gives you the power to be completely detached from outcomes, one of the biggest things that gets in the way of accomplishing goals.

• Big Risks/Big Goals: With absolutely nothing to lose, you are in the in perfect position to take big risks and set big goals. When you are not at rock bottom you can actually get caught in the trap of your comfort zone.  When you are at a low point, then you have a tendency to really push the envelope of what’s possible. Many bloggers have been forced into the situation they are in (me included) because of other circumstances. The byproduct is that we now live a life that is far better than what we had originally imagined.

If you are at a low point in your life, I encourage you to give some thought to why this could be a defining moment that completely changes the trajectory of your life. If you’re asking yourself “why am I in this situation, this sucks?”, then you are setting yourself up for failure. You’re going to need to shift your focus and ask yourself the question “How can I use this opportunity to take my life to the next level?”. If you do that you’ll find that dramatic positive change is inevitable.

Srinivas Rao is a personal development blogger/surfer who explores various life lessons inspired by riding waves at his blog, The Skool of Life. He’s also the host/co-founder of BlogcastFM, a podcast to help you take your blog to the next level.

Originally posted by Donald Latumahina