How to keep going…when the whole world stops

 

I’ve been chatting to friends and clients and the one thing we all seem to find is that incredible speed at which so many things have come to a halt. One of my roles as a coach to help people figure out what they really want to be and achieve and then hold them accountable as they journey through the milestones of achieving their goal. This takes on a new perspective  when the world hunkers down to contain a virus

Aside from my work projects and goals I have a personal exercise goal that has been a long time in the making. I have rekindled my love for running and I’m just getting to the stage where I can start smashing the distance goals and complete races that have long been fantasies. Then suddenly overnight all those races have been cancelled or postponed indefinitely. I woke up yesterday morning, put on my running shoes, stood at the front door, changed my mind and went back to bed. I’ve been pondering what happened and why the lack of a deadline, a goal and a group to run with,  suddenly strips me of motivation.

Today,  I ran while I was thinking about it, and this is what I came up with, I hope you find it helpful.

Deadlines may disappear, but you have not

I remembered something a marketing colleague told me years ago:

“Deadlines are just a figment of our imaginations, somehow there is always time to reprint even when the deadline is passed.”

Now that my race is pushed out to some unknown date, it doesn’t change that I’ve run over 500km in the last 6 months. That means I am being the runner I wanted to be, I’m fitter, healthier and enjoying the runs. That in itself is a milestone. I chose that race as a goal because I wanted to be a runner again and that is what I am being every day that I lace up and start.

Deadlines and goals are just a means to an end, focus on the person you choose to be and be that every day, in some small way.

Find the Fear and Move Forward

Every ping of my phone is another meme, post or email about the virus as people try to come to terms with it and its impact on our lives. This constant attention is fuelling the fear, its constantly reminding us that nothing is the same, everything is fluctuating and changing, As an entrepreneur, this takes on huge proportions as the unknown is getting bigger and we don’t know if we will ever do business the way we did before.

Fear is good when it alters us to danger, it is not when it cripples us and stops us from growing and moving forward. Fear doesn’t just go away, so don’t ignore it, listen to what you are feeling and then make a conscious decision to move with that information in mind.  

I’m doing that by trying to reframe the problems and choose to embrace solutions. I am not self-isolating for fear of getting sick, if it happens I’m most likely to recover. But I can also stop the spread of the virus by not being out there increasing the number of people being infected and affected. I choose therefore to #flattenthecurve reduce the strain on essential services and find productive ways to be at home.

I can help more vulnerable people do online orders, collect necessities and reach out to people to support them through this. Lots of time at home makes all this possible.

Connect

We are made for community and connecting with others. Being alone too long can allow loneliness to creep in and this often makes things feel worse.

Get rid of the meaningless social media memes and have a video coffee date with your besties, have a Friday night dinner with friends over skype, have a group chat with your regular social groups. It may feel weird at first but the value of connecting, hearing voices and having real interactions is worth getting over the initial strangeness.

I held my usual divorce support group last night, but for the first time online. It was great to be able to see faces, share experiences and learn from each other despite not being in the same room.

Be Kind

Just be kind, to yourself, to friends, family and to strangers.

Look after yourself by avoiding junk food and watching bad TV. Read books and watch content that inspires you and teaches you something.

Be kind to others, they are probably going through some of the same fears, doubts and loneliness. Now more than ever before, the whole world is in this together. See what makes us all human and reach out where you can.

The sun will rise tomorrow and again the day after that – choose to greet it with hope and love in your heart and be the person you really want to be.

If you see me running, wave! If you want to chat, click the button below.