We all have those bad days where anything that can go wrong, inevitably does: you get a flat tire, you are running late to work, and you are overwhelmed by your to do list. Thankfully, no matter the circumstances, there are a wide range of time tested tactics you can use to turn your day around!

1) Be Kind To Yourself

When you are feeling like things are falling apart around you, you have to make self-care a priority. As easy as it is to start blaming yourself for things not going your way, try to be kind to yourself so that positivity can come to the forefront of your day.

2) Do Something Productive

Positive moods come from a sense of accomplishment. On bad days, these moods are hard to come by! Bad luck can be very demoralizing and make us feel like we have no control. These feelings can put us in a rut that can cripple our whole day. To change this, try finding something that you can check off your to do list that has been weighing on your mind. By getting something that you have been putting off accomplished, we can regain control of our day and feel a sense of mastery that can quickly trigger a mood change!

3) Treat yourself

During stressful days, you deserve to treat yourself! A great strategy in managing tough days is to develop a self care “toolbox”, full of a few different activities that you already know will put you in a good mood. Some suggestions could be:

Splurge on a food you really enjoy, but don’t get to eat often
Spend some quite time reading a book
Get a massage
Download a new app that you’ve been wanting to try

The key to these activities is that they should be simple and under your control. It is also a good practice to keep adding to this list as you find new activities that you enjoy. Doing this will only add to your arsenal of self-care tactics!

4) Avoid Situations That Will Make Things Worse

If you know that you are having a bad day, don’t put yourself in situations that could make it worse. If you know that meeting with a family member or friend might trigger a negative emotion, you my be better off rescheduling that engagement. It is a lot easier to cope with one isolated incident that set you down the path of a bad day, so it’s a good practice to avoid any other incidents that might add to!