There’s no euphoria quite like the release of a nightmare.
The catch is how you survive until release arrives.
I have lived through five horrible nightmares.
Five avalanches that came my way.
Five that I thought I could not survive.
- Three health related
- One family related
- One money related
I will share one here.
We were on a ski trip. Right after Christmas. Lizzy was 5. Kate was 2. I call the office from the restaurant at Monarch Pass ski resort. Worst news you can imagine for calling the office on a holiday. Majority partner says, “I am closing the business. Moving to Houston. You are on your own.”
That was December 1987. Right after borrowing the maximum amount to own and remodel a home in University Park. Right after the Dow Jones Industrial Average erased 22% of its value in a single day.
Driving with me shortly after the ski trip, the main partner swings by the neighborhood and says, “Nice house. I hope you can keep it.”
That’s when I started my financial planning business.
Essentially fired. On my own. In debt. No salary. Young family. Riddled with fear.
Similar to being trapped in an avalanche.
Experts in that scenario say to . . .
- remain calm
- let go of heavy equipment
- swim backwards
- dig around your face
Of course, this is taught from a nice climate controlled room via webinar.
Here are four quick thoughts about surviving chaos.
1. Remain calm
Right? Just be calm. Reminds me of the angel’s first words to the shepherds.
“Don’t be afraid.” Luke 2:10
There has to be a powerful reason to believe someone who says “Don’t be afraid.” Whether the issue is financial chaos or any other crisis.
Early in my life, I willingly thrust my whole being on who this angel announced.
My faith stabilizes my mind to think clearly in an avalanche.
Check out the number of times Jesus spoke “do not be afraid” in the gospels.
I know His presence is with me at all times no matter what problems I face.
2. Let go of heavy equipment
Drop all non-essentials. In life and in business, separate the vital from the trivial.
As Greg McKeown said in his New York Times bestseller Essentialism, “The overwhelming reality is we live in a world where almost everything is worthless and a very few things are exceptionally valuable.”
3. Swim backwards
Ironically, this is your best chance to survive an avalanche. Keeping your face toward the surface makes a better chance to breathe.
If you had not read this, you could have figured this out from a textbook rule in problem solving.
Respond and don’t react.
The great reward in any problem, no matter how catastrophic, is each step taken to respond and not react.
So, instead of hunkering down to make a living with a guaranteed salary, I started 1988 by launching my business through free speaking forums learned from scouring the newspaper.
One person who heard me led directly to my nationally syndicated radio program and featured newspaper columns throughout the state of Texas.
Lean into the catastrophe. Face it squarely. Attack it creatively and you will see the next step.
4. Dig around your face
Profound simplicity focuses on the catastrophic problem at hand in the clearest way.
That’s when you see what is clearly needed.
- Dig around your face
- Make room to breathe
You can do this if you recognize that attitude is the critical difference in staying around long enough to watch the nightmare vanish.
It’s not so much what happens to us as what happens in us that counts.
How do you survive an avalanche?