So you’ve had a bad day? Your big launch didn’t get the sales that you wanted, your customer has decided that they no longer want to work with you, your tax bill is bigger than you had budgeted for or you’ve had a less than shiny review left on your Facebook page… And maybe you’re not sure how to cope with bad days.
How to cope with bad days
It happens. You know that only saying, the only things guaranteed in life are death and taxes? Well if you are a business owner then the other thing that is guaranteed is that you’ll have bad days. Lots of bad days.
You’ll have great days as well – and I’m sure you’ll have far more great days than bad.
But the ones you’ll remember are the bad days. Unfortunately, that’s the way it goes. No matter how many amazing reviews your book gets on Amazon, the one you’ll remember is the negative one.
Is that familiar?
So, now that we’ve accepted that bad days are guaranteed and that they’ll happen more than you want them to – you need to know that it’s not all doom and gloom. There are definitely ways that you can get over the bad days, you just need to know the tricks.
So here are my favourite ways to get motivated on the bad days (note I have bad days as much as anyone else, bad days don’t get any less the more successful you get. And I don’t always bounce back as quickly as I’d like – I’m only human – but these are my tried and tested ways to keep going when times are tough).
Focus on the positive
Every time something good happens, celebrate it. The more you can recognise and celebrate your wins the less important the bad days will seem. You don’t have to celebrate in any extravagant way, just maybe a text to a friend when you get a new customer or treat yourself to a bubble bath and glass of wine if you achieve the goals you set yourself one day. Maybe keep a list of all the good things that happen that you can read back when you have a bad day?
Gratitude
The energy of being grateful is one of the most positive you can get into. Some people like to write a list of 100 things every day that they are grateful for and others swear by choosing one big thing that happened every day that you are grateful for. Try it, you’ll be impressed at how it changes things in your life.
Allow yourself time to wallow
You can’t be expected to enjoy problems and you are allowed to feel sorry for yourself when something goes wrong. It’s a mourning process. Think about what went wrong, whether you could have done anything differently and what you’re going to change next time to make sure it doesn’t happen again. Set yourself a limit on feeling upset, give yourself an hour or a day or as long as it takes and when that time is up – you stop and move on.
There is no magic answer to a bad day, it’s just one of those things that you have to learn to get through. I promise it gets easier in time!
The 20-Minute Rule That Changed How I Handle Bad Days
I spent years treating bad days like emergencies that needed solving immediately. The moment something went wrong, I would spiral into problem-solving mode, sending frantic emails, making impulsive decisions, and generally making a difficult day considerably worse. The shift that changed everything for me was embarrassingly simple: I now give myself a strict 20-minute window before I respond to anything that feels urgent when I am already in a low state. Not a vague “sleep on it” instruction, but a literal timer on my phone.
Here is what I do during those 20 minutes, because sitting there stewing is not the point. I get away from my desk entirely. I make a coffee or walk around the block. The physical separation from the screen is non-negotiable. What I have found, and this is consistent enough that I now trust it completely, is that roughly 70% of the things that felt catastrophic at minute zero look manageable or even trivial at minute 20. The other 30% are still problems, yes, but I am in a better state to deal with them without adding more damage through a hasty reaction.
The science behind this is straightforward enough. When you are having a bad day, your cortisol levels are elevated and your brain is in a threat-detection state. Every setback gets processed through that filter and comes out looking bigger than it is. You are not being dramatic, your brain is reading the situation as more dangerous than it is. The 20-minute pause is just enough time for that physiological response to ease slightly. You are not waiting for the problem to disappear, you are waiting for your own chemistry to settle enough to assess it clearly.
I also keep what I call a “bad day note” in my phone, written during a good day, that I read during difficult ones. It contains three things:
- A specific bad day from the past that felt irreversible but was not, written out in detail
- One thing I am proud of building or doing, stated plainly without false modesty
- A reminder that my worst professional decisions have all come from rushing when I felt terrible, not from taking my time
Reading something you wrote to yourself during a calm moment is a strange and useful experience. It is the closest thing I have found to getting perspective from someone who knows your situation completely, because of course they do. I recommend writing yours right now, not during a bad day, because if you wait until you need it you will write something useless and catastrophic. The note needs the tone of someone who has survived a few things and knows you will survive this one too.
None of this is glamorous advice. There is no app for it and no productivity framework to buy into. But in seven years of running my own business, bad days included, the 20-minute rule and the note have done more to protect my work and my relationships than almost anything else I have tried. Bad days do not stop coming. What changes is how much collateral damage they cause, and that part, at least, is within your control.
The short version: Bad days are a normal part of life, and the way you respond to them matters far more than the day itself. Give yourself permission to feel what you feel, lean on simple routines, and remind yourself that a bad day is just one day, not a forecast for the rest of your life.
Frequently asked questions
Why do some days feel so much harder than others?
A combination of sleep quality, stress levels, hormones, and small frustrations that stack up can make one day feel overwhelming compared to another. Your brain is not broken on those days, it is simply carrying more than usual.
What is the fastest way to shift your mood on a bad day?
Moving your body, even a short walk, is one of the most reliable ways to interrupt a negative spiral. Pair that with a glass of water and a few slow breaths, and you give your nervous system a genuine chance to reset.
Should you push through a bad day or give yourself a break?
Both have their place. If you can identify one small task to complete, that sense of progress can lift your mood, but forcing yourself to perform at full capacity when you are struggling often makes things worse. Be honest with yourself about what you need in that moment.
How do you stop a bad day from turning into a bad week?
Avoid making big decisions, isolating yourself completely, or telling yourself a story that today reflects your future. A good night of sleep, a conversation with someone you trust, and a gentle return to your normal routine are usually enough to draw a clear line under it.
Related: what a genuine product review looks like
