There are days when you wake up and you might feel extremely energized and ready to shake up the world. But there are also some days when you might not even feel like getting out of the bed. There could be many underlying reasons behind the shifts in your personality but, for the most part, you’re just human and it is completely natural for you to feel certain things at certain times.

Most often, you’ll do whatever your mind tells you to do. Your mind is that powerful.  Staying positive is difficult in times of need, and freaking out once in a while is normal because if you don’t, you’re probably drifting rather than living.

The journey towards success is long, so facing struggles is inevitable. However, there are several ways to plan and deal with these hard times. To succeed in the long run, you have a few actionable elements you can implement in your life:

1. Rely on support

It is true that we’re not 100% independent. We rely on people in our personal lives and in business. So have your support system in place and take help from it. If you have another co-founder or a close friend, you can give each other support.

As they say, “two is better than one.” Support helps make bad days better. Rather than suffering in silence, ask and accept help. Just make sure you trust the person and have a strong relationship with them before accepting their help.

2. Regain Focus

You have a problem; you’ve got your support system. What next?

Refocus your attention. Focus on the next action needed to complete any of your ongoing projects successfully, as successful projects start with top talent. If you keep obsessing over your loss or failure, you’ll never be able to fix it.

Yes, analyzing what went wrong is one thing, but moping over it is another.  Turning your focus from your fear towards a problem-solving, optimistic approach of, “Yes, this can be changed!” can put you back in control.

3. Be Honest

Optimism calls for honesty.

You don’t have to hide your troubles so don’t lie about your situation to anyone, especially not co-workers or staff. You don’t need to share the whole picture, but don’t lie about your company’s health. If it’s going bad, be honest about it.

You will get through it one way or the other and your reputation won’t suffer because you were honest. This is why they say, “Honesty is the best policy”.

4. Try the “Fake it ‘till you Make it” Approach

In spite of it being a popular saying, this approach really works. It’s a cliché, but positive thinking really does change your behavior. It even affects your experience of the situation.

At the start of your career or business, you can face some involuntary changes. They might result in you needing to do things that you have no prior knowledge or training for. Don’t let the negativity and frustration eat you up inside. Instead, put a smile on your face and start acting. Fake it!

By wearing a fake smile for a long period of time and acting like you’re happy, you can start to feel exponentially better. You might still resent the additional struggles you’re facing, but never let it show on your face. By being fake-happy with your surroundings, you can actually get enough space to make your next move. And with an exceptionally positive attitude no less.

Quite honestly, it can be very stressful to stay positive after facing failure. But when you remain calm and deal with issues positively, nothing is as hard as it seems. There is always a solution to every problem, you just have to wait it out and see for yourself how things work out.

Keep your focus on the good. Remember why you started. Keep your eyes on the prize. And always have a plan B and C ready for whatever might come next. Success is a hard road to travel, but once you’ve gone the distance, dealing with every difficult situation that comes your way, you will learn how sweet it really tastes.

The reward is real happiness and a successful end to your journey.