Week five of lockdown here in Tāmaki Makaurau ended yesterday, with two more weeks ahead but with the addition of takeaways :)
If you are a human being, you may be finding it hard right now. We are all fatigued – mentally, emotionally and physiologically.
The struggle is real when we are flooded with external demands; trying to stay on top of the workload while managing relationships at home and at work or managing to stay afloat if we are battling it alone.
Here are 4 simple mindset hacks to help you on the next leg of this journey:
1. Always begin with self. Because, simply, that’s the only thing that you are really in control of at any given moment in time.
E + R = O ( Event + Response = Outcome)
Without this equation, you will be stuck in a reactive pattern to events and that’s exhausting and counterproductive. To get yourself unstuck, focus on the learning zone.
Some useful questions to ponder over: How can I get back into the locus of control? Who do I want to be? Are my actions aligned with my values?
2. Ask yourself: What matters most right now?
Get crystal clear on what’s really important to you right now. This requires a daily check-in with yourself and is an ongoing battle when we are juggling so much. Give yourself permission to pause and reflect: In the fulness of time what would have mattered most?
Be diligent about this dynamic of urgent vs important .
Try to lighten up the bottom two quadrants and give yourself permission to focus on what may not appear urgent but really matters the most. Just having the intention to reflect on this is a good start and will give you access to the top quadrants.
3. You have to nourish to flourish.
Stop wearing your exhaustion as a badge of honour - this powerful reminder comes from Brenê Brown. As conscientious, busy people the impulse is to knuckle down and work harder.
To be your best self, you need to find a more holistic approach to getting stuff done. Working harder in a state of exhaustion and brain fog is simply not productive. A beautiful and wise reminder from my colleague Andrew Dearing came in this morning:
"Make sure to keep feeding your souls amongst these changes. Serving self is the most powerful way to enable you to serve others. And a little further… serving self is not self-serving!"
4. You are FLAWESOME! (flawed AND awesome, at the same time!)
We are not machines; we are complex, vulnerable, brilliant creatures with infinite potential to grow, learn and adjust. True opportunity lies in accepting this paradox of being flawsome. Remember, we are wired for negativity bias. Start noticing the awesome a bit more and accept the flaws that are part and parcel of being human.
Everything depends on the focus of your attention. What will you lean into today?