Heal to Feel Real: Lessons bloom where pain once grew. If you focus on the hurt, you’ll keep suffering—but if you focus on the lesson, you’ll heal and grow.
Heal to Feel Real: How to Turn Ouch into Growth Fuel
Ever stepped on a LEGO barefoot? If so, you’ve already met pain—one of life’s most persistent (and most creatively sadistic) teachers. Much like that tiny plastic ninja hiding in the carpet, life’s biggest hurts show up uninvited and unapologetic.
A heartbreak. A job loss. A betrayal.
They sting. They stew. They linger.
But what happens next? That’s where the real story begins.
Some of us replay our pain like Melodrama Marcy with her emotional playlist on loop. Others, like Growth-Minded Kate, dig through the rubble for wisdom and rise stronger.
The difference? Perspective. Let’s unpack it.
1. Pain Can Be a Teacher or a Jailor—You Choose
Take Bitterness Ben. He worked his tail off for a promotion, didn’t get it, and threw himself a grand ol’ pity party—complete with internal monologues and imaginary mic drops. Six months later? Still no promotion… and still no growth.
Enter Bounce-Back Kate. Same story, different sequel. She asked, “What can I learn from this?” and signed up for a skills course, built her network, and eventually landed an even better role.
Lesson? Pain’s inevitable. But whether it locks you up or levels you up? That’s your call.
2. The Power of Perspective: What Are You Watering?
Imagine two gardens.
One is overrun with weeds—resentment, self-pity, and ‘why me’ vines. The other? Blooming with strength, wisdom, and resilience.
The difference? The gardener.
If you’re Rumination Rick, replaying the same old wounds and watering them with “shoulda-woulda-couldas,” your garden’s gonna look like a mess.
But if you shift focus—tend to the lesson, not just the loss—you’ll grow something beautiful.
Next time a hurt resurfaces, don’t flinch. Ask: What’s this trying to teach me?
3. Healing Is a Process, Not a Flip of a Switch
Wouldn’t it be great if we could just hit “delete” on painful memories? Unfortunately, healing doesn’t work that way. It’s more like a three-step process:
1️⃣ Acknowledge the pain – Don’t sweep it under the rug. Feel it.
2️⃣ Find the lesson – What wisdom can you extract from this?
3️⃣ Move forward – Use your newfound knowledge as fuel for growth.It’s not about forgetting the pain—it’s about letting it help you bloom.
✍️ Note to Self: Healing isn’t about erasing the past. It’s about learning from it so you can bloom where you once broke.
The FUNomenal™ Finale: What are you watering? Weeds or Wisdom?
AI Sidekick Alert: This post was unpacked and given a touch of FUNomenal™ sparkle with the creative assistance of my behind-the-scenes AI brainstorming buddy!
About Tony
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Tony Brigmon | Speaker—Emcee | TonyBrigmon.com
Tony Brigmon is a party animal. He’s been known to stay up well past nine o’clock drinking root beer and telling G-rated jokes. Sure, the neighbors complain, but that doesn’t stop him. Because Tony is serious about having fun. Serious fun, with serious results.
As a result of his questionable spelling skills, Tony learned at an early age that his name spelled backward is “YNOT.” As in, “YNOT take a closer look at his book?” Or “YNOT smile when you should be crying?”
Tony was a Southwest Airlines “Insider” and the former “face” of their renowned culture as their official “Ambassador of Fun”. At Southwest Airlines, “fun” was the power of “positivity” that helped catapult a small carrier into a force that changed the airline industry.
Today, Tony is a popular speaker, emcee, and author of The FUNomenal™ Workplace. (FUNomenal™ is pronounced the same as phenomenal but it’s a lot more FUN.)
Former CEO of Southwest Airlines Howard Putnam says: “Tony has a gift for blending fun and capturing ideas in a manner that sticks for audiences.” Tony’s friends say that no one should have so much fun while sober. Tony’s wife said she has had about all the cheerfulness she can stand.
“Fun” transformed this author’s work and life. YNOT discover if the serious power of fun can transform the next 30 seconds of your day or 30 years of your life?
YNOT arrange to have Tony Brigmon teach you and your team how the power of fun can help you get more done, bring out the best in everyone, and make you irresistibly attractive in your communication with others. You can do this. So, YNOT?
