Reinventing Rock Bottom

Get off the ground, break the chords, dust yourself & start climbing

 

“A lot of times you have to hit rock bottom to have the persistence to have the why-not-attitude, because with it comes the realization that you just can’t keep on living like this anymore. You want a way out and are willing to try something totally different as a last resort. This always feels a bit like dying, because you are giving up your previous conceptual orientation of yourself for a new and uncertain beginning. It is a step into unknown, an experience you haven’t felt or did before.”

I guess most of us if not all never give the term “rock bottom” much thought until you hit it. For many it is an event that happens just once for some it is several times.

In whichever category we might fall under, we can all agree that this is definitely an uncomfortable and frustrating place to be, but we can seemingly convert this struggle into a power that transforms our mind. Let me bring the point home; there will be those moments when you’ll feel like you are on top of your career like receiving a job offer or a new promotion. On the other hand, there will be those times when you’re working two part – time jobs unrelated to your degree, or even worse you’ve been stuck in unemployment for an unbearable long period of time and your dreams suddenly come to a halt. This could apply in any area of our lives.

Sometimes hitting rock bottom can be a wake-up call. There’s nothing that motivates a person more. The only way from rock bottom is up. There simply isn’t any way things can get worse and although you wouldn’t know it at the time, it is actually comforting that this is as bad as it gets.

Believe it or not, it is okay to hit rock bottom once in a while; it is transformational because it forces one to rebuild their life in a way they never thought they would have to do. It opens your mind to think of solutions and the ascent up could lead to a point of satisfaction.

Getting to that point is extremely hard to do but is also extremely rewarding. Some of the greatest accomplishments made by the most influential people of our time started when they hit rock bottom and later worked their way up, giving reference to Steve Jobs, Abraham Lincoln, and Oprah Winfrey among others.

Like any normal human being, they slipped into their cocoons, stayed in the dark and felt sorry for themselves but one day they took a turn ran their fingers against the crag and started pulling themselves out.

I have realized over time that being in this situation is more like flying, the difference is there are strings that are holding you up. 

How you choose to interpret it, is your choice…

Photo Courtesy: Crag Law Center

According to Jason Goldberg; you can choose to be crushed by the rock. You can become gravel that outside circumstances push deeper into the earth with no control over its own destiny.

You can make excuses and pretend that this is your only option. But you would be wrong. There is another option. You can become the rock! You can use it to become a boulder that is strong and can steamroll anything in its path given the right direction and momentum.

You can use the rock as a stepping stone to reach heights of re-invention that may have otherwise felt impossible.

By now we understand that life will always throw challenges at us and when the last straw that breaks the camel’s back leads us to a point of no control; always remember that you can either let it define you, destroy you or let it strengthen you.

Written By:

Dorcas Waringa 

17/05/2015