Soooo….how about that Covid-19, eh? I don’t know about YOU, but this has got to be the strangest global-emergency-type event that I’ve ever lived through.
And it’s not only strange – let’s face it – it’s scary too. Entire countries are shutting down, provinces and states are scrambling to find the “right” level of new-normal, with shut-downs and shelter-in-place restrictions.
For heaven’s sake, just getting into the liquor or grocery store is as stressful as crossing the border into another country! (Hey, we have to kid about these outrageous but much needed security steps being implemented – but I can assure you – you don’t need your passport – yet!).
Of course, everyone’s asking people how they’re doing? How they’re coping? The kids are home, possibly spouse and/or partner as well, or if the kids are grown maybe there’s elderly parents to worry about. Or maybe you are at home and you’ve never had to work from home before.
It almost feels impossible to have any brain-space left to think about your proactive business or corporate responsibility, right? Add those worries to all the rest – how are my employees, will my clients pay ME so I can pay my freelancers? How will I meet the company’s business development targets? It’s the end of the month and all the bills are coming due – regardless of whether you work for yourself or someone else right now.
I just want you to know – really know – that you’re not alone in all of this. And that there are people out there who can and WILL raise you up, and help you, if you need it.
Like the government. Keep abreast of what aid is being put in place for you.
And your friends and family. Social distancing notwithstanding, find ways to connect with people.
Many people are finding time in their overwhelmed lives to provide value and crisis advisory for free.
From financial professionals, to lawyers, to marketers to coaches.
And I’d like to help too.
As a mindset specialist, relationship counsellor and core beleif engineer for over 2 decades, I want to provide some actionable advice.
Let’s talk about how to deal with some of this stress and pressure.
Because there WILL be a new normal. And we will still all be running our businesses and caring for our loved ones when this is done. But as the old “airplane analogy” makes it oh so clear, if cliched – if YOU don’t put your oxygen mask on first – everything else around you won’t have a chance in H* E* Double* Hockey Sticks*!
Here’s the first thing I want you to tell yourself when you wake up every morning – and before you go to sleep (I hope!) every night.
YOU CAN CONTROL HOW YOU FEEL
Or as I prefer to tell it, you can be in COMMAND of your feelings.
A lot of what is fuelling this feeling of crisis is the fear of the unknown and feeling like you are out of control.
And I’m not going to tell you that what you’re feeling is not real. Of course, it’s real! We’re in the middle of a global pandemic!! BUT, while you can’t control the external chaos, you can learn to control how you REACT to it!
I want you to start by finding your calm within you. I want you to essentially step into a position of leadership to yourself.
And what I mean by that is that right now many of you feel like you’re on a boat on a raging ocean, and the boat’s rocking and the waves are crashing, and you don’t feel like you have a lot of control and you might fall into the boat. So, you start to hold on for dear life. And what happens when we start to white knuckle any part of our lives? They don’t call it “white knuckling” for nothing! You get VERY tense. Your muscles seize up, and blood flow is restricted. But no matter how tense you get – or how tightly you hang on – you just can’t stop that boat from rocking.
STOP WHITE KNUCKLING!
If you were to stop white knuckling it, relax your body, let go of the bed – wait – BED??? Didn’t I tell you that you were in a bed on this boat in the raging storm? No? Well, if your sleeping patterns have been anything like mine lately – trust me – the metaphor is apt, if odd.
Anyhow, you let go of the bed, and you slowly breathe and try to adjust yourself along with the rhythm of the boat. Once you relax yourself and just “go with the flow” there’s a good chance you’ll weather the storm better.
Start there.
Next week, I’ll have some more tips on how to manage your mind.
Tell then if you need to talk, reach out to me at any time, via MeganO’Neill.ca if you need some reassurance. We are all in this together. And I’ve found some time each day in which to help people who need an ear with mindset speciality.
Stay safe.
Megan
