When you can't move forward, step back!

photo by SeeMidTN.com (aka Brent)

Some of you may recall my recent hit with a power outage. The journey since then has been very interesting. My deductible is higher than I remembered. I think I forgot to read the small print in an addendum that raised the $250 to 1% of whatever the value of my house is at the time of loss which puts us at $1437 right now. Then there is the $172 claim-free discount that I would lose with a claim for three years.

I am very grateful it isn’t a bigger claim but now I have unbudgeted items for a furnace repair, new surge protector strips to replace the blown ones, son’s TV that he just paid for two weeks ago, the garage door opener, and other minor things.

Loss of Power

Yesterday, my Internet was down more than up and since I live online, that’s a problem. More than 80% of my client base is now somewhere else in the United States or elsewhere and I use Skype and phones to connect and share screens, I need my Internet. I already knew people on my side of town not connected to the power outage who had been having trouble with their Internet. Their provider was also Charter. However, at least one of them said they called Charter and there were no outages in our area.

My router and/or modem could have taken a hit that made them unstable since the surge protector they were connected to blew out but they were working. Puzzled is how I feel right now.

Within a mile of my home office, there is a major re-engineering project on an intersection. I can hear the heavy equipment banging as I work. You never know how that kind of construction affects communication either. Too many variables.

Yesterday, I felt like the dog in the photo. No matter which way I went, I was frustrated. The dog got stuck in the sleeve and couldn’t move forward or back. But I could.

Step back and reassess

Due to the frustration of fighting technology, I decided to step back and give up trying for a bit. I did it three times yesterday. First, I changed my lunch plans with my friend, Linda, from going out to eat to cooking here. Then I went out in the garden to pick peas and pull a few weeds which also gave me a break to think more clearly.

We made salmon on the grill in the middle of the day and experimented with grilling beets. We sat down to a nice lunch and just enjoyed each other’s company.

I had given my 2pm client in Florida a heads up that I was having issues with the Internet and met with her anyway. Skype didn’t work and I couldn’t keep my Internet up long enough to really exchange files by e-mail more than once. But I did have time to give assignments, get clarification, and assure my client that we would be able to get the project completed on deadline.

Then I took a nap to clear my head. Sometimes you just have to step away. When you can’t move forward, you have to step back and see the options. I know some of mine.

Job seekers who feel powerless

Job seekers face those moments of frustration too. They want to get the new job but they hit walls and at times those walls may seem insurmountable and they feel powerless. You can keep struggling but maybe this is the time to find some alternative activities to divert your attention from the problems. You can then come back with renewed focus to solve the problems later.

When we feel stuck, struggling to move forward, wanting to move back to a more comfortable time in life, sometimes the best think is to step back. What do you think?