Hope in Disappointment ~E Reiss

In the aftermath of the election I’ve seen a series of posts, videos and other content actively displaying a sense of despair and deeply felt emotional response. In response to this, I’ve seen a fair amount of mocking snark, and condescension.

It seems like a lot of this engagement is only separating people further in a landscape that is already deeply divided.

My goal here isn’t to preach or fix, nor is it to chide or correct, but only to offer thoughts on possible paths forward. The reality is we all experience disappointment in big ways and small, and if that isn’t you this week, it will be you soon enough. So here we go, use if useful!

How to Find Hope in Disappointment:

1) Focus on What You Can Control

I love the band Switchfoot, not just for their incredible talent and sonic, but for the way they turn the problems of their songs back to local responsibility. They almost always frame an issue we all would agree is an issue, then they hold up a mirror and address themselves as the real problem and changing themselves as the way to move forward. It’s an interesting, surprising and for my money, healthy approach.

Are you in control of elections? Political parties? Swing vote on any big issue of the day? Yeah, me either. But just because you don’t hold levers of power doesn’t mean you can’t do something deeply meaningful. If you have the means, adjust your budget to be generous for the cause(s) you care about. If you don’t, look to give in other ways. Your favorite organization would likely benefit greatly from your expertise or simple hours as a volunteer.

Do something good! It’s an incredible strategy for re-directing focus on how bad “they” are to acting in a healthy and helpful spirit. Even if “they” are quite bad, we’re not in control of “them” - but we are in control of us upgrading our personal impact in a good way. My mirror agrees that I can do better.

2) Turn Disappointment into Opportunity
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I remember my high school baseball team with incredible fondness. What a great group of talented guys. They taught me lessons that will shape me forever.

One thing in particular was our beautiful response to striking out. I don’t remember who started this, but instead of cursing and throwing a helmet in disappointment, we started running back to the dugout and giving a detailed description of the pitch that got us. 

The team would crowd around for a detailed scouting report in real time. 

The result? 

Around the 4th inning or so, our collective intel allowed us to clobber the poor guy on the mound. Even the strike outs became a handy tool that helped us win.

So let your disappointments take you to school. Learn. What can you do better? The things that hit us badly, can improve us, and propel us in positive directions if we engage in a certain way.