I received feedback. It was a problem that I needed to address with a customer…the not-so-good feedback. It didn’t feel good, I was frustrated I had to deal with it, and I wanted to put it off. I didn’t know how to deal with it. I stewed over it until finally I had to address it, after hours of emotional distress.

This is a pattern. It wasn’t the first time.

These things happen – to all of us. We make mistakes. We get negative feedback.

I know this.

But what good does the emotional distress do for anyone?

I’m pretty sure it does no good at all.

So I was talking to someone about how to get to the other side of these situations. I always feel better later. How can I take action without the pain and frustration in between?

She told me a story.

Buffalo, she said, when they see a storm coming – they don’t run away. Nope, they run towards that storm so that they can get through it and out the other side more quickly.

I heard this awhile ago and keep coming back to it. I LOVE this viewpoint. Avoid all that stress, and just take care of the thing, and then let it go.

“Taking care of it” is not always easy. But when there is something we can do to make things better, we should do it. And when there is nothing to do, well, then, why bother with the emotional stress of it?

Easier said than done, but I hope that the buffalo analogy may help you in your future tough spots.