TWHS#081: 5 Techniques To Keep You Thriving In Tech

It's a tough time in tech.  Lots of redundancies.  Lots of jobs being reshaped by AI.  And the folks that haven't been made redundant are maxed out picking up the slack, whilst their roles are transformed.

It can get a person down!

But don't let it get you down.  Be a rational optimist. 

You don't have to love My Little Pony to be an optimist. You don't need to deny the problems and challenges staring you in the face and only see the world as rainbows and sparkles.

Rational Optimism is what it's all about.  Hopefulness and confidence about the future.  And it's something you can learn!  Here we go:

Positive Psychology

You are in charge of your state of mind.  Know that you can synthesize happiness and positivity.  It's not exclusively influenced by external factors. 

• You can choose your response when you get stuck in a traffic jam.
• You can choose your response when your colleague is rude to you.
• You can choose your response when your job changes.

You are not just a product of your environment.  You can take control of your response and not be defined by the circumstance around you.

You are in charge of your optimism - so grab it and take control.

Practical Visualisation 

When we have a tough challenge, a difficult conversation or anything difficult looming on the horizon, our inner critic can go berserk.  It can tell you all the bad things that could happen, and how everything will go wrong.  And that negativity can spiral.

Replace those negative thoughts with a positive visualisation of the situation.

But not a wishy-washy visualisation.  Focus on the specifics.  What will you say in the meeting, how will you present your perspective, what words will you say?

Be positive, replace your negative thoughts with conscious positive ones. It works for Olympians and can work for you.

Gratitude

When things are feeling pretty tough, gratitude can really lift you up.

• Gratitude helps remind you of the great things that you have in your life. 
• Gratitude helps reduce physical and mental symptoms of distress.
• Gratitude helps create physical positive changes in your brain.

Everyday say out loud, or write down 5 things you’re grateful for.  Be creative - don’t name the same things every day.  It helps you remember the positive.

Your Relationship With Failure

Failing is a good thing, not a bad thing.  Social media makes it look like everyone's winning and you’re the only one failing.  That's not true.

My son has a poster in his school classroom:

FAIL =  First Attempt In Learning.

• Embrace failure as a sign of your progress.
• Embrace failure as a great learning tool.
• Embrace failure, and it’s consequence as part of a life well lived. 

Laughing

When things get a bit dark, a bit difficult, a bit pokey,  having a good laugh helps takes the sting away.  If you can laugh at something it reduces its power.  A good laugh can really help you get in a more positive frame of mind.

If you need some help with a laugh I'd recommend "Last One Laughing UK" on Amazon prime.  One of the funniest things I've watched for a while.  This is not a sponsored post, honest :)

So, take control of your optimism

• Choose a positive response
• Visualise the difficult things
• Harness gratitude
• Embrace failure
• And have a laugh

Hope this helps

Ben