Is discouragement an inherently bad thing? How can we go from being discouraged to using it as a tool to accomplish our goals? This is the second part of a conversation about discouragement and how to overcome it when working from home.

Disclaimer: we are not mental health professionals. We are simply sharing from our experiences in this episode and hope it can shed some light on the issue. Please seek the help of a professional if you are constantly discouraged or down on yourself.

• 0:39 - Is it an inherently bad thing to be discouraged?
• 2:29 - Discouragement is part of the human experience. What’s dangerous is soaking in it.
• 3:52 - If you ever have maximum courage and maximum confidence, you have no checks and balances.
• 5:43 - Emotions aren’t necessarily good or bad. How you handle them is far more important.
• 8:44 - Sometimes people who are discouraged don’t need encouragement in that moment. Many times it’s better just to listen.
• 10:18 - When you work from home you are in a more isolating situation than being in an office.
• 13:35 - It’s not bad to be discouraged, it’s challenging.
• 16:11 - Suppressing how you feel can make it compound on itself.
• 17:42 - A few things that can help in overcoming discouragement are:
  • Building a community of friends and coworkers who can help keep you in check.
  • Being honest about your discouragement and never assume it’s “just you”.
  • Keeping a list of nice things others have said or done for you that you can reference when you’re feeling down.
• 20:09 - Sometimes encouragement can actually make someone feel like they’re less than for being discouraged.
• 25:59 - There’s a lot of power in not disregarding how someone is feeling. Have conversations about it.
• 27:09 - Empathy is extremely important if you’re helping someone deal with discouragement.
• 32:43 - One of our good friends and listeners Daniella asked: “How do you resist discouragement when you are constantly looking your competition in the face? Social media, Instagram, all the places where my audience is there’s also what other people are doing.”
• 34:20 - Looking at others online is deceiving. Nobody wants to look bad and only highlight the good things.
• 37:03 - It’s healthy to know and see your “competition”, but it’s more important to look at where you’re at and the effort you’re putting in.
• 38:36 - Make a plan for when you go and look at this stuff that might make you feel discouraged. That way you can be prepared.
• 39:51 - If you’re thinking of competition as the enemy, that’s the problem as well.