Make Good Use of Bad Days

Last week, one of my friends at work gave me a book: The Art of Living, a collection of thoughts by Epictetus. While a lot of what Epictetus said resonated deeply, one quote stood out above the rest.

"Make the best use of what happens to you."

I get the chills typing it.

Reader, it was another grueling, long week at the restaurant.  We're still short-staffed.  A lot of equipment broke.  We lost track of inventory.  And tensions were high.  I was getting mired in it, and by Saturday afternoon, I felt truly lost.

Until I remembered that quote from Epictetus.

And it dawned on me to ask: what can I use here?  And when I looked at it that way, the day may not have gotten better, but I sure did get a lot out of it. I made plans on how to track inventory. I tried again to find more staff.  I found better equipment solutions.  And I even wrote a few verses of a song about those high tensions.

(Not to mention: I learned a lot about what I didn't want to do next week.)

Anyhow, I'm not sure if it helps you to read this quote as well, but I thought I'd pass it along, just in case. Whether or not you have a good week, I hope you're able to make good use of it all.  See you next Monday. -Em

 

 

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