10 Steps for Getting Over Humiliation

I doubt that anyone gets through life without ever feeling utterly humiliated. But what should you do when it happens to you? humiliation can feel so intensely painful and debilitating that advice for dealing with it may seem futile. Maybe in those early moments, it is hard to do anything but wallow in your own distress, but there are some useful tips out there.

The 10 Tips for Dealing with Humiliation:

1. Realize that you are not alone. “If you can find people who have had a similar crisis to your own, talk to them.”
2. You have to be resilient, not just smart. Sometimes what separates successful people from those who fail is not talent, but the willingness to keep coming back after terrible setbacks, rather than giving up.
3. Most of the time, it’s nothing personal. Success is often about a fit between you and a particular place or situation. If you don’t fit, don’t take it personally—just move on to a better fit.
4. Learn from the experience.
5. Seek out a support network to help you move on.
6. Use any downtime you have to do something you really enjoy.
7. Think twice before striking back. “Your cause may be just. But the more relevant question is whether plotting your revenge is the best use of your time, energy, reputation, and likely, money. Wouldn’t it be wiser to focus on plotting a new future for yourself?”
8. Don’t hide. “You need to affirm for people, and perhaps for yourself, who you are and what you stand for. And you need to show people that the crisis has not destroyed you.”
9. View the crisis as an opportunity. For example, use it as an opportunity to pursue something you love.
10. Move on. Don’t wallow in your humiliation. Plan for the future.

There’s a lot more. Still, I think the road to recovery is probably different for different people. Some, for example, may really need time just to hide out and be by themselves, and not even talk to potential sources of support, before regrouping and moving on.