Your Resetting Protocol?

[El Presidente]

Your resetting protocol? 

 

I have had a great year. Busy year. Mentally I am fried and if 2024 were an Olympic 800m race, I turned the corner (October) firing and two lengths in front of the field, but have fallen into a funk with 100m to go. I have been here before, gone out hard and fast and faded just short of the artificially designated finishing line. Jesus, I know I am getting older but it still pisses me off. 🙄

I am sure I am not the only one and so I ask members as to what is your "resetting protocol?" 

For me, I am in need of beach (surf) and sand, a notebook (pen and paper) and alone time. It is through this period that I can reset and re-energise. 2-3 weeks will do it. 

Your resetting protocol? Any advice? 

 

[MrBirdman]

Really tough question Rob - we all end up there from time to time. Or a lot of the time (at least it can seem that way when you’re in it!) I describe these as mental ruts, since I don’t think they’re usually physiological (unless you’re sleep deprived). Maybe it’s a function of getting older but it’s been happening to me since I was a teenager so who the hell knows. For about 15 years I felt in and out of ruts in my personal life constantly but professionally never wanted to stop, now I feel my personal life is wonderful and I’m professionally struggling with motivation more frequently. In the end, I’ve learned it’s mostly about perspective. 

The best advice I’ve ever gotten about dealing with these situations is counterintuitive but pretty simple: find ways to help others. Volunteer locally or to help a friend. Call someone you think is struggling just to talk or meet up. It can really be anything that you think will make a positive difference - small or large - in someone else’s life. It helps make the time I focus on recharging myself feel more rewarding.

Beyond that I have way more useful advice about what doesn’t work; I’m very much an American as described by Churchill (“Americans can always be trusted to do the right thing, once all other possibilities have been exhausted.”). But that’s the kind of stuff better reserved for a Zoom herf 😉

[rabidraccoon]

Well as a college student now it's a bit different for me because the end of the year is less of a milestone than the end of a semester for me. Back when I was a working adult member of society though, at the end of every year I would kind of evaluate how it went and think about my best and worst moment of the year (as well as best cigar moment of the year). Based on that, I would set my goals for the upcoming year. I think your slow down is kind of natural though, especially with the holidays and a year of (hopefully) accomplishments and hard work in the books at this point. Is it kind of weird though in the southern hemisphere since yall are in the middle of summer? For me in the northern hemisphere it feels like a natural cycle of the four seasons and year ending, followed by the repetition of the cycle.

[Li Bai]

My resetting protocol is very simple, lots of alone time, catching up with friends I don't see enough and turning off my phone for days. 

I love people, I love meeting and making new friends but I HAVE TO have alone time everyday, at least an hour and I don't need as much resetting as I used to 👍

Oh, and I nearly stop talking after 9:30 pm so unless it's an emergency everybody around me knows not to call me 😁

[Marco_011t556]

2024 was almost the most rocking year in my life.

Change of my career (jumped out of comfort zone), getting connected with nice guy to coach me. How to reset myself? Maybe a beer, nice movie, relaxing hotel…and non-stop working (money XD) energise me, LOL!

[pohlmad]

I love reading all of these! Interestingly, I usually don’t know I need a reset, but my body seems to tell me. Eventually I’ll get a really strong ‘bug’ that puts me in bed for a few days but I come out rested and ready to take on what the world throws my way!  

[joeypots]

I almost never see these guys except when we ski together, once or twice a year, for a week at a time. We ski hard at some destination resort in North America. We don’t talk about work, politics, or religion. It’s a complete break from my home/work life and never fails to put my head right.

Mr Bird is onto something.

17 hours ago, MrBirdman said:

The best advice I’ve ever gotten about dealing with these situations is counterintuitive but pretty simple: find ways to help others

I'm not much but I’m all I think about. Doing something of service to others anonymously can take me out of my own head a bit. It’s the oldest coping skill and always provides a little satisfaction when everything is goes meh.

[Chibearsv]

Like @Li Bai, I have to get out of my head every day. My left brained operations mind never stops unless I distract it. Time at the shooting range, golf, loud music, good book or movie, etc. Time off is stressful for me since I know the shit show gets shittier the longer I’m away. 

[Ford2112]

A good fishing trip charges the batteries and gets me centered. Family is important. Having hobbies is good for having balance. Fishing warms the soul. Find your passion!

[RDB]

Important to reset regularly and properly. A weekend doesn’t do it. The critical element is being TOTALLY ABSORBED IN SOMETHING ELSE.

Switch off the connection to the usual stresses. Leave the laptop behind, do not log on to the work email. See how that very idea makes you anxious? That’s the tell. Just before I went away recently for ten days, I lost remote access to work servers. I had 12-24 hours of anxiety, then nine days of proper reset.

Do the thing that fills your busy mind with other concerns. For me it is mountains and the sea. Keep the boat on track. Avoid getting lost in the forest in the dark. And look at the beauty. Good things to focus on, real things.

[MrBirdman]

3 hours ago, joeypots said:

It’s the oldest coping skill and always provides a little satisfaction when everything is goes meh.

110%

[bmac]

Ten days on the lake and hope for the best with family at Christmas etc. If no one leaves angry we have been successful. This time of year is tough for many so best wishes to all. One day at a time. We really appreciate the opportunity to slow down at years end and count our many blessings. Not as much family around these day so I always try to enjoy the small things that slipped by in my youth.

[Chibearsv]

33 minutes ago, bmac said:

If no one leaves angry we have been successful.

Great sentence when family is around. Impossible if my sister is involved 🤣🤣

[BigGuns]

I initially took this as an end of the year reset to bring in the new year with a fresh start, new perspective, and rejuvenation. Perhaps this works whenever the rut presents itself, but my end of the year ritual is somewhat simple - I clean my office. While it is “clean” year round, I go deep - disconnect and remove everything off my desk, purge files, reorganize my decor, etc. Sometimes I have to look for something to “clean” but nevertheless, I find it and figure out a way to refresh my physical space which occupies most of my productive time.

A renewed, organized environment helps me welcome a renewed, organized outlook and effort. 

[chasy]

If I need a proper mental reset, I do the opposite of relaxation. I want to spend time doing things that require 100% focus, thereby eliminating the ‘wandering mind.’ For a long time it was spear fishing - a great hobby and one which allows for little to zero room for thoughts wandering from the here and now. I find that skiing does the same. When you’re barreling down a mountain it’s hard to let yourself wonder about anything else.

[El Hoze]

21 hours ago, joeypots said:

I almost never see these guys except when we ski together, once or twice a year, for a week at a time. We ski hard at some destination resort in North America. We don’t talk about work, politics, or religion. It’s a complete break from my home/work life and never fails to put my head right.

Mr Bird is onto something.

I'm not much but I’m all I think about. Doing something of service to others anonymously can take me out of my own head a bit. It’s the oldest coping skill and always provides a little satisfaction when everything is goes meh.

Love it! We have a second home at Steamboat. 

[BoliDan]

I get hammered drunk and listen to Led Zeppelin.

[Li Bai]

1 hour ago, BoliDan said:

I get hammered drunk and listen to Led Zeppelin. 

I used to do that too but I had to stop when my hangovers began to last 24 hours. 😁

[zeedubbya]

Beach here as well. I book the travel (accommodations, airfare), and let others make the plans while we are there. I make no decisions for at least 5 days. NONE. This is where the family comes in. Really, just spending time with my daughter in the surf and water and on the beach recharges me. I’ve wondered lately if, since heavy rain ruined 3-4 days in June if I didn’t get a proper recharge. Same feeling for me El Prez., maybe it’s age? February can’t come fast enough, might have to make a quick run between now and then though 🤔 

[helix]

Poking around an all inclusive resort for a few days works for me.

[RedLantern]

I'm kind of similar to a few people above. Clean & organize my living/work space. Make a big list of all the niggling things I need to get done, and cross them off. I find that when I've been hard at life and work's day to day, small stuff tends to pile up and it just rattles around in my mind which tends to give me kind of a low grade feeling of anxiety. Getting all that stuff done feels kind of like "defragging" my hard drive, so to speak. Afterwards I can engage in some pleasureable activities or leisure and TRULY enjoy it. 

[Goldeneye]

For me time in the fall chasing elk and deer in the foothills of SW Alberta, ducks in the marsh and grouse in the forest with my dog does wonders for me. I need time out of the city with friends and fresh air every fall. It seems to really rest me mentally and physically for our long winters.

[HoyoFan]

Hey Rob, this is something I also struggled with for a while. One of the things I realized is that an annual reset didn’t work for me because pretty soon all the trials and tribulations of every day life would catch up to me and I would ultimately need another reset.

So instead, what I have found is that a consistent daily practice works much better than an annual or bi-annual reset.

For me, it’s the following:
- Workout
- 10 min meditation with the Waking Up App
- “Morning pages” exercise where I dump my in the moment thoughts onto a piece of paper with a pen.

I don’t let myself check my phone until those things are done. As a result, they act like a sort of inoculation against the rest of the day.

I also went on a social media diet for two weeks. That was 7 years ago. It’s helped tremendously.

Hope all that helps!

[Duxnutz]

On 12/16/2024 at 7:08 AM, El Hoze said:

Love it! We have a second home at Steamboat. 

We’re driving from Cali to Cincy and just spent Christmas in steamboat. Great place! 

[El Hoze]

On 12/26/2024 at 3:02 PM, Duxnutz said:

We’re driving from Cali to Cincy and just spent Christmas in steamboat. Great place! 

Glad you enjoyed it!