When Life Hands You Lemons

Certainly, many of you have read, heard or seen Dale Carnegie’s phrase “When Life Hands You Lemons” in various songs, display pictures or postcards. The continuation of this phrase means more than the phrase itself. What do you do “When Life Hands You Lemons”?  What do you do when life doesn’t go your way? Dale Carnegie says make lemonade out of it. New variations of this phrase have conquered the worldwide web realm. Some variations suggest throwing them back at life. Some tell you to make margarita out of them and throw a party, while others advise you to clone them and make super lemons out of them.

This proverbial phrase encourages optimism to all its readers. It motivates you to get up and face your misfortune rather than commiserating on your luck. How you react to unexpected situations can directly affect your personal and business lives and can affect people around you. The use of the word “Lemons”, in this context, is a metaphor to indicate the unfortunate or inadequate situation that the person is in; Referring to the sour and acidic taste to unsweetened lemons while lemonade conveys a sweetened alternative and a more pleasurable situation.

Without doubt, many of us have been handed “lemons” during our lifetime where we had to be in a difficult and unexpected situation. There are times in life when everything goes smoothly and then suddenly it comes to a halt and “lemons” are squeezed in our eyes. In that specific moment, life examines how well we deal with difficulties and the next steps we take shape our lives and personalities. When these irregular times come by, many people find it a problem to deal with their issues. Those who get hit with circumstances on a more frequent basis may have developed better skills to handle these situations more effectively.

It is very common for us to give up and walk away from something we passionately wanted due to several failed attempts; to fall in the trap of people telling us that we can’t do it. When life doesn’t pan out the way we planned, we should ask ourselves “Am I going to let my circumstances manage me or am I going to manage my circumstances?” If we view life as a problem, it becomes ordinary. If we view it as an opportunity, it becomes extraordinary. The most effective leaders make a practice of managing their circumstances.  They have taken the time to learn how to best manage situations that take them by surprise. They have the ability to look at “lemons” and don’t allow it to falter them.

It is true that we encounter stress and disappointments everyday and challenges can weaken us. However, if we devote our time to feeling sorry for ourselves or being negative, it will only weaken us further. So if life ever gives you lemons, sell them at a marked-up price, purchase more lemons from their profits and repeat the process until you have a multi-billion firm.