When things return to normal
We're living through an unprecedented time. The things that we thought were certain turned out not to be. Whoever, other than in the pages of a dystopian novel, imagined closed borders, grounded flights, closed schools and shops, closed restaurants and pubs, people working from home, furloughed staff?
I wrote those words in the middle of May last year. Who knew that then end of April 2021 we’d still be waiting for things to return to some semblance of normal? Perhaps it was a good thing we didn’t know, making it easier to be optimistic and deal with each new curve ball that 2020 threw at us!
I re-read what I wrote about returning to normal and decided that twelve months on it is definitely worth revisiting. So here goes, with a few edits to reflect our current circumstances.
We all want things to improve as soon as possible. No one wants to see anyone suffering physically, mentally or financially. But it’s going to be a long road to recovery, things will not all return to normal immediately.
That said, while I won’t miss being in lockdown there are things about my normal that I don’t miss at all. In fact there’s a little bit of me that is dreading the return to some of my “normal” and I know I’m not alone in this. It’s been a repeated theme in conversations with clients, friends and family over the last few weeks.
So what do we do about it? How do we make sure that we’re not just sucked back into a normal that we now realise isn’t what we really want anymore?
Firstly be clear about what it is that you want. What is it that you want to be different?
Get as much clarity as you can. Don’t worry about the how but get really clear about what and why. Without clarity it’s hard, if not impossible, to move forward.
One of the best ways to get really clear about what you want is to look at each area of your life. It’s very easy to just focus on work or family relationships for example, but our life is interconnected.
What do you want your normal to be in each area of your life? Work/business, relationships, fun/leisure, home environment, health, spiritual life, personal development. Pick between four and eight areas that speak to you the most and work out what you want.
Why is this important?
I’ve had one friend tell me that as much as she loves her lovely flat spending so much time in it has made her realise that it’s time to move.
A client has told me that she realises that there's no good reason why she couldn’t work from home for at least some of every working week. She's more productive and less stressed, not to mention reducing her carbon footprint.
Someone else told me that she has realised that she doesn’t need to spend so much of her working life living out of a suitcase in hotels as many of the meetings can easily take place over zoom.
At the same time as these “big” realisations many of us have, for example, built exercise into our lives in a way we haven’t previously. I try to get out for a daily lunchtime walk when I’m working but if I’m honest with myself it happens about three times a week and never when I’m at home. Now though I’m going out for a walk every single day. The only day I’ve missed in the last six weeks was because I had a migraine. (Twelve months on – still true I’m happy to say!)
Going outside to exercise is one of the freedoms we had during all three full lockdowns here in England and many of us took advantage of it if we could. I feel so much better for getting outside even when it’s cold and grey. What’s the betting that unless we’re intentional about it this daily exercise is one of the first things to go when life gets back to normal?
This is why looking at what you want from all areas of your life is so important. If that daily 30 to 60 minutes of exercise is important to you, or eating as a family, or meditating every morning, or stopping to eat lunch away from your desk, then how are you going to make sure that it continues to be part of your day or week when we return to “normal”?
The answer is start planning for it now.
Get clarity about what you want and need from each area of your life.
Get clear about what your non-negotiables are.
When you have that clarity then start working out the when and how.
If you want to change how you work – when and how will you raise this with your manager?
If you want to change career or start a business start working out the first action steps and set yourself some deadlines to work towards. Do you need to retrain? Is it possible to start now?
If you want to move house what steps do you need to take?
As there's so much uncertainty around because of the pandemic it’s very easy to fall into the trap of telling ourselves that there's no point trying to plan for the future as we don’t know what's going to happen. But, we know we still need to work, we need to manage our finances, we need to maintain and nurture our relationships, we need to look after our health and our personal development. If we want to come out of this into a normal that reflects how we really want our lives to be then now is the time to get clear. Now is the time to begin the work.
I don’t know about you but I don’t want to look back on this in 12 months or two years or even five years and say I missed my chance. I failed to reflect and here I am doing the same thing in the same way when there is a better way.
Are you ready to get clear about what you really want and move into action? Then my Confidence Jump-Start is for you!
We’ll have an hour of powerful coaching during which we'll identify the mindset shifts and changes that will create the change you so desire. You'll finish the hour with your unique action plan and then have seven days of coaching support via email to help keep you accountable and on track! A whole week of support for just £97.
And, if after this week of coaching and support you decide that you want to upgrade to one of my coaching packages I deduct the £97 you paid for your Confidence Jump-Start from the cost of the package. A win-win for you.
