Recently, it seems like doom and gloom is around every corner, with war in Ukraine and possibly Taiwan to dispossession in America and so much more. The failures and mistakes start to pile up in your mind and you desperately want to just leave. The answer is to treat this demoralization not as something to go around, as that will lead to you avoiding challenging scenarios, but to go through it and come out stronger.

As hard as it is, I do think that treating everything as a learning mistake can be very helpful. This can feel impossible when it’s something you have worked hard for, but it can still help you grow. You should not lie to yourself; be honest about your feelings regarding the situation (no matter if they’re anger, melancholy, etc.). Take hold and ride the tiger in these scenarios; turn that which would be destructive into a vehicle for change. Many people think they need to develop resilience rather than fragility, but what is more important is anti-fragility; you want to improve as a result of the stressors and harsh elements of the world.

Without a doubt you do not want to wallow in self pity. You should recognize the situation as something you’d prefer to not be in and see how you can make sure it doesn’t happen again. Self reflection is important in these times, and you should use these times to think about your future and your past. Oftentimes we have a tunnel vision in regards to time, looking only at the now and the near future, but we also have a problem where we do not live in the moment; we’re constantly worrying about a million things, and letting that go is essential to helping yourself. Spend the time that would be used for self pity on looking at yourself from all different angles and scanning the situation.

Thus far, I’ve discussed what to do during a demoralized time, but how does one get out of it and move on to better things? I like to think of how lucky and blessed I am in other ways, as well as trying to score minor victories for the sake of self. These can be very small — ensure they are something you can do. Some that are good are cleaning, reading, writing or exercising.

Once you get out of this period, remember what brought it about. If you are constantly getting demoralized because of something, think about what you can do to fix that and prevent demoralization.

Ryan Hurley is a senior in marketing.