We very often hear phrases like “When we were young”, “When I started my business”, “When I was at university”, “We used to do things like this”, “Before we expanded”, “When I was 25 year old” etc.
Unfortunately some of us just stay in the past and don’t come to realise that as wonderful and insightful as those stories are, they all have a past tense attached to them. What really matters is the present and the future. You don’t have any control of changing the past but you do have control of what you are doing in the present and what you would do in the future.
So once your sales were wonderful and now they are struggling at less than 50% of that? Stop thinking how wonderful things were when you were enjoying the wonderful sales run and get to work on getting them back there and beyond.
So you used to work 9-5 on weekdays only as an employee and now putting in 10 hours plus 7 days a week in your own business? Stop thinking how wonderful things were as an employee and get your business sorted so you can work 9-5 on weekdays only.
So you used to get away with quite a few things a few decades ago and now the system has caught up with it all with advancement in technology and you are caught more often than not? Stop complaining about the system and get in line with things.
And it can go on and on.
If thinking about the past makes you happy and joyous but thinking about your present and future makes you not as joyous, then get working because you don’t and can’t live in the “Good Old Days” forever, you live in the present and will live in the future so do what you have to make that joyous instead of wasting your time thinking how great things once were but not anymore.