I’m pretty sure everyone is facing less than ideal circumstances right now. There’s a global pandemic (that’s only picking up speed where I live), the country seems as if it’s never been more divided, oh…and just for fun…half of my state is on fire (including one of my favorite deer spots). But, one of the things I love about hunting (and the reason I recommend it to every dude who isn’t a militant vegan) is that it helps prepare us for this kind of stuff. I mean, there isn’t a specific lesson learned in the field that prepares you for Coronavirus or looting in the streets, but hunting builds grit like few other things I’ve found. And grit is what we need in a big way right now.
But, in the pursuit of that grit, there are often temptations to quit (that wasn’t supposed to rhyme…but here we are). Hunting is a year-round pursuit for me, as I’m sure it is for most of you. Even when there isn’t an open season, I’m preparing, I’m scouting, I’m staying fit…on any given day of the year, there’s something I’m doing to prepare for the next season. But, in the midst of those efforts, there are setbacks. There are problems that pop up and make you think, “why am I even doing this? It’s too hard. I won’t succeed. Why not call it quits?” I think we’ve all found ourselves in that place in the middle of a hunt, maybe in a tough week of regular life, and I bet we’ve all had that thought at some point in the last few months.
Sometimes that temptation to call it quits gets really hard to ignore!
So…if most of us will find ourselves at a quitting point somewhere along the line, how can we keep ourselves motivated to keep going…even when it doesn’t feel like it’s going to make a difference?
Fake It ‘Til You Make It
Okay, this piece of advice sounds kind of heartless, but it’s something I remind myself of almost daily. Our culture has 100% bought-in to the notion of following your heart. We make decisions based on what feels right. And if you only do what you feel like doing, you’re not going to accomplish very much when your feelings betray you. When it feels like it’s not worth it, when it feels like you’ll never succeed so why try, when it feels like you’d rather eat a tub of ice cream on the couch than work out…there are hundreds of examples in any given day where the wisdom of “following you heart” completely fails.
My advice in that situation: do what you know you should do, whether you feel like it or not. Feelings lie…all the time! So, when you’re out in the field on day 4 and it feels like you’re never going to connect on a buck, stay out there, hike to the next ridge, and keep going because you know that it can all turn around at any moment. When you’d rather sleep in because work is kind of a nightmare and it feels like it would be so much better to just stay in bed, make yourself get up and hit the gym because you know it’s what you need to do for you own physical and mental health.
And in case I’m starting to sound preachy, this is more for me than anything. As I look at this page, I’m realizing this is my first blog post in a month (I try to post weekly). I’ve been trying to climb out of my own hole of demotivation, and actively writing this right now is part of me faking it ‘til I make it…trust me, I’d rather be sitting here mindlessly surfing the web. But, my feelings lie all the time, so I’m forcing myself to do what I know is the right thing. And the beautiful thing about this method is that the feelings almost always follow. Get a couple sets into that workout you were dreading, and suddenly you’re motivated and glad to be there. Start writing that post you’ve been putting off for weeks, suddenly the keys are tapping and you’re excited to be writing again. I can’t think of an example where I made myself do the right thing and my feelings didn’t eventually follow.
Don’t let the body language fool you…I’m actually really happy to be there.
Reflect on Your Past Successes
I have to be careful with how I explain this, because I’m in now way advocating staying stuck in the past. I’m not encouraging you to go full Uncle Rico and dream of what could have been if the coach had put you in 4th quarter of the championship game. I’m simply saying that when it starts to seem hopeless, when it seems like nothing is working out and therefore nothing will work out, remember that it has worked out before. If you’ve ever encountered a hunting slump (like I’m right in the middle of right now), you can start to believe that you’ll never connect on an animal again. I find it incredibly helpful to go back and reflect on the hunts where I did find success. It helps me shift my inner monologue from “this will never happen” to “you have done this before and you can do it again.” (That’s also why I’m incredibly grateful I go through all the extra effort to film my hunts…going back and watching films like these gets me fired up to get back out there and recreate those moments.)
Obviously, this strategy works in just about every area of life. Relationship struggling? Remember the good times…the way you guys started…and realize that with some time, work, and communication, you can get back to that place again. Work or career falling flat? Don’t let your mind spiral into how it’s all your fault and you’ll never be successful. Start writing down all the times (even if they were isolated projects) where you really felt successful and realize that you’ve done well before and you can do well again.
Control What You Can, Release the Rest
This one may be the hardest to apply…at least it is for me. I want to be in control - the master of my own destiny - and the simple truth is that there is so much about life that I simply have no control of whatsoever. When faced with one of those “oh crap, I’m not the boss around here” moments, there are basically two options: 1) Try to control it anyway, send your anxiety and blood pressure through the roof, and probably drive the people closest to you insane. Or 2) recognize that you aren’t in control of that particular situation, quickly evaluate if there’s anything you could/should do to help, and then shift your focus back to things you can actually do something about.
Case in point: about four weeks ago I jacked up my knee…like, bad. I’m still working through some steps with doctors to evaluate if it’s a really bad sprain or a full tear, and trying all the least invasive ways to heal it before digging in there. But, the second it happened, my immediate thought was, “no, this can’t happen! I’m in the middle of writing some fitness/training courses, I need to dial in my own fitness for Fall seasons, and so help me if this tries to keep me out of the elk woods this September, I’m gonna lose my mind!” I still dip in and out of attempts to control the situation, but the simple truth is there is nothing I can do. All I can control is my diligence in trying to properly rehab the injury. I can control if I push it too hard in the gym. I can control if I stay consistent with ice, compression, and doctor’s visits. But, I can’t control what exactly is broken in there, and I can’t control if I’ll be ready to hit those steep Colorado slopes again in September. When I try to control it, I start to freak out, get mad, and everything starts to spiral. When I take a deep breath and focus only on the aspects of the situation I can control, it’s a much better experience all around.
My view as I write this…it doesn’t bode well. (Also, I apologize for not warning you that I don’t shave my legs)
Now, that’s the mental side of the issue. There’s a whole other (and frankly, more important) side to this, and that’s the spiritual component. I’m not sure where you stand on the whole God-issue, but I don’t think I’d even remotely be able to let go of my attempts to control things if I wasn’t handing them over to the capable hands of a loving God. I’ve seen Him come through for me more times than I could even begin to list here, and it helps me in those moments when everything is going wrong to know that He’s got this, and it’s going to work out (even if I can’t see how in the moment). So, no sermon or anything, but if it’s been a long time since you’ve thought about God or tried praying, maybe give it a shot in this season. The world is a crazy place right now, so why not seek all the help you can get?
There’s Always Hope
As long as you have breath in your lungs, there’s hope for everything to turn around. I won’t presume to know exactly what you’re facing right now, but whether it’s hunting related or something much more serious, don’t despair. Hopefully one of these ideas gives you something you can apply and helps put you in a much healthier headspace. Yes, things get rough, but they can also be really, really good…as long as you don’t give up!