What would make today a good day?

When life feels uncertain, try taking things one day at a time

Almost a year ago, I was made redundant but I was optimistic. I was relieved to be out of a burnout situation and looking at notes from that time, I wrote posts like “Why I feel relaxed about losing my job (again!)” and “How to embrace uncertainty.”

A year later, things aren’t so easy. I’ve not been completely out of work, I did a couple of contracts, but my energy and enthusiasm haven’t bounced back. In many ways it’s felt like I am just going through the motions. Which I sort of am – having had several redundancies, this new job search is a bit like being stuck in a wash cycle on repeat. Back to square one again, despite the hard work.

I don’t think I’m the only one in this. I keep bumping into people who say they’d rather not be working at all. People who’ve had multiple burnouts and/or redundancies and are a bit fed up of the whole thing.  

At first I thought it was the algorithms sending them my way, until it started happening in real life too (which I guess is the same thing, if you believe we create our own reality, in a ‘law of attraction’ sort of way).

The current news environment doesn’t help anyone. Whether it’s geopolitics, the climate or the economy, things are not great. Spend only five minutes on LinkedIn and you’ll come across articles on ‘the end of the 9 to 5’ and the ‘AI job apocalypse’.

I am aware that compared to many, I am writing this from a situation of privilege. I am in good health and none of my problems are life-threatening. Still, as someone who is normally purpose-led and genuinely loves work, this feels like drifting.

So how do I get myself out of this funk, and back to myself again?

What would make today a good day?

What is currently working for me, is doing life one day at a time.

Not in a ‘let’s just let’s just go through it so I can go to back bed’ sort of way. But recognising that having free time, and next to no obligations, gives me the freedom to prioritise the things I enjoy.

This sounds simple but it’s not. If you have people-pleasing tendencies, if you usually focus on what you ‘should do’ rather than what you want to do (which I would guess is most of us), it requires taking a step back.

By asking yourself ‘What would make today a good day?’ not ‘What needs doing today?’ you regain a sense of agency. While you have no control at the macro level, it helps narrow your attention to your surroundings.

Obviously not working full time means I can’t spend as much on entertainment, and I spend more time at home. I make the most of it by reading (new books or others I read a long time ago), watching favourite TV series, taking care of my apartment and my plants. I do yoga and walk around my neighbourhood taking pictures of people’s gardens (this being spring in England, the flowers look spectacular).

It’s a slow life centred on what I actually enjoy.

This doesn’t mean I don’t get any job-searching done, it just helps keep my spirits up by prioritising other things. On days when I have a lot of energy, I’ll put more into the to-do list. On days where I feel doomed, I take it easy instead of kicking myself. I plan something small for the next day, so I can look forward to waking up.

In doing so, I am slowly recharging my batteries, so I can turn up fully charged for my next job, instead of feeling drained from the start.

They say what you do every day is what you do with your life, and I can’t fault that logic.

Learning to prioritise nice things, rather than optimising every minute around work and productivity, feels like a good skill to learn in these times of generalised burnout.