No matter who you are, or where you live, right now, everything seems to be upside down, not right side up. Who knew that at any given moment, a package of toilet paper could suddenly become more valuable than your stock portfolio? To say the world is experiencing a lot of change would be the understatement of the year.
There are essentially two kinds of change: planned and unplanned.
Planned change is a conscious choice or decision. This might include taking a trip, planning to have children, changing your career, moving house, getting your driver’s license, or deciding to lay off the pizza and bulk up on kale salads.
Unplanned or unforeseen change is an unexpected event or consequence of a circumstance. This may include illness, accidents, injury, a divorce, or a layoff. The reality is, life puts all of us through unplanned change, and COVID-19 is an unplanned change on steroids.
Unplanned change can often lead to grief, depression, stagnation, indecision, anxiety, and make us question everything we once thought we knew for sure. On the flip side, unexpected change can also open doors, bring us joy, happiness, and excitement, offer new opportunities and experiences, usher in new love and friendships and build faith, hope, strength and courage we never knew we had.
When rapid unplanned change happens, sometimes it’s hard to see the upside of things. We are often fearful about the future because we worry about what may or may not happen . Fear is a big barrier to change. In reality, fear and worry are just faith and hope in reverse.
The first step towards successfully navigating change of any kind, especially rapid unexpected change, is acceptance. This does not mean you have to be happy about a situation; it just means to move forward, not backward, one has to try and accept change, not resist or deny it. Acceptance enables you to change your perspective, and find clarity of thought so you can find answers when you need to.
Having a positive mindset, faith and hope, are more important now than ever before. It will make the difference between having a super awesome life, or a super rotten one, while all this upheaval plays out.
That’s where mysuperawesomelife.com™ comes in, we’re all about positive! We are here to help you successfully stickhandle change over the next few days, weeks, and months while the world, and our lives, unfold. Along the way, I’ll share ideas and stories to help you find balance and fun, so you can believe in yourself, keep moving forward, and land butter-side up in the game of life.
First up, let’s try to put the F back in Fun while we practice social distancing. The way I look at it, the two-metre rule is like going to a CYO Dance. You still want to get up close and personal with your partner or friend, but right now you’ve got Sister Mary Catherine peeking over your shoulder with her ruler saying, “save some space for the holy spirit”. Bottom line: we need to take social distancing seriously, but we can still have fun and dance in our own space.
On that note, while we get through this, don’t forget to check out my Super Awesome Things To Do So You Don’t Go Shack Wacky which is included below. Share this post with your friends and family so you can help them too. Most importantly, try to keep the faith. If you believe everything will be okay, it will be.
I look forward to keeping connected and hearing how you are navigating all this change.
Until next time, stay healthy, and stay super awesome!
Best,
Jane
Some Super Awesome Things To Do So You Don’t Go Shack Wacky
1. Calm Your Mind
During times like these when we don’t know what the next 5 minutes will bring, take time to calm your mind, pre-pave your day, and reset to a positive mindset. To do this you can:
Meditate
Each morning, I put on a guided mediation from The Mindful Movement. My dog Buddy joins me too. Buddy is my black Labrador Retriever who is 12 years going on 12 months, and still full of beans. If he falls asleep during the meditation, I know it’s a good one.
Practice Yoga
Practicing Yoga is another great way to relax and calm your mind. You don’t need to go to a class, you can practice yoga at home. My friend Elda and the folks at Modo Yoga Hamilton are running online classes, and YouTube is chock full of videos that can guide you through your routine too.
Get Outside
Start hiking or walking, ride your bike, or go for a run. The fresh air is good for the soul!
2. Try to Look at the Upside
Consider this pause in the world as a wake-up call from the universe to slow down, reflect, regroup, and take stock of what is important to you – a staycation of sorts. Consider time away from work, activities, and others as an opportunity to re-evaluate your life and relationships, and focus on people and experiences that are meaningful and important to you.
Ask yourself:
What perspective and priorities do I want to keep, or let go of?
What intentions can I set that will help me with a fresh start- a new perspective that aligns with my goals and priorities?
Do I need to make any adjustments to achieve a work/ life balance and relationships that are positive and manageable?
Is there an experience, routine, or practice that can help move me forward and live my best life?
3. Get Creative
Often the pace of our lives can wear us out and take us away from things we enjoy. Getting creative can take many forms such as drawing, painting, music, writing, building, crafts, decorating, or gardening. Consider taking up a hobby, or revisiting one that inspired you, but you never seem to have enough time for. Besides, it seems like everyone will have a lot of toilet paper rolls to use up- so let’s get crafty! For ideas visit discoverahobby.com and check out this crafty video about toilet paper rolls.
4. Get Organized
Spring is here and what a great time to clean those closets, declutter, and clear out things inside and outside that are no longer serving you. For inspiration, look to Marie Kondo and the life-changing magic of tidying up. You may not be able to control the rest of the world, but you can organize and control the space you live in.
5. Game On
Take a cue from Nintendo and organize a game online with your friends. Party games like Charades, Pictionary, Trivial Pursuit, Name That Tune, or a dance-off , can still happen via Skype or FaceTime. Pick a theme, dress up, make some cocktails, and have some fun! Visit Pinterest for more ideas.
6. Take a Trip-On Me!
Last year I traveled to San Francisco, Hawaii, New Zealand, Fiji, Australia, Italy, and Nashville. I had some amazing adventures with incredible experiences and made some wonderful memories that will last a lifetime. Since it seems no one will be traveling anywhere anytime soon, take a trip on me! Visit my travel stories page to escape for a while. At the same time learn about some super awesome places to Stay, Play, Dine and Shop around the world when all this chaos is over.
7. Re-Connect With Your Kids
No matter what the age, any time there is rapid change it can be an anxious time for you, and your kids. Being away from their friends and school will require new routines and some explanation. As a parent, you need to take care of yourself, so you can take care of them. Thankfully, there are experts out there like Michelle McVittie from Mom The Manager to help you successfully navigate this change.
Moreover, while everyone is home together you are going to need things to do. Back in the day when we had no internet and cell phones we got outside, played dress-up, hide and seek, treasure hunt, built tree forts, played games, rode our bikes, and hung out. With the kids out of school, now is a great time to re-connect with your children and have some fun. If you are looking for inspiration, visit fitnessbythesea.com for fun activity ideas you can share with your kids.
For the adult children in your life who have just entered, or are trying to enter the workforce, there will be a lot of change. Starting a networking group with your friends to see where there may be new employment fits is a great way to keep everybody busy, and working. If they need to polish their resume, visualCV.com is a great place to start building a portfolio.
8. Become a Life-Long Learner
Try reading something fun and inspiring during this challenging time, and connect with others who may be struggling. Consider starting a book club; gather if you need to via FaceTime or Skype to so you still feel connected to the outside world.
If you have extra time on your hands, now is a great opportunity to take an online course, learn something new, or tackle a subject you have always been interested in. Masterclass, Skillshare or LinkedIn is a fun way to do this. They take talented, celebrities and experts from around the world and share interesting educational videos on heaps of topics. If you want to share your knowledge with the world, consider starting up a blog or online business. Use this time to develop your strategy, or research a business idea, so you are ready to switch gears if you need to. If you've been wanting to learn how to blog or start an online course check out Joanne Vivolo's blog or online course, Boss Your Business.
9. Stay Connected
Before the internet, my grandmother and her friends used to have a telephone tree. Each day, especially when they couldn’t get out in the wintertime, they would take turns calling each
other; a different person on a different day, for 5-10 minutes to say hi, how are you doing, and make sure everyone was okay.
Now more than ever it is important to stay connected. Setting up a telephone or texting tree with your friends is a great way to stay connected through tough times. Staying connected helps us nurture friendships, and help each other out when we need it. Suggestion: have a Quarantini FaceTime Friday with your friends and catch up!
10. Remember Gratitude
Gratitude is a powerful tool. Practicing gratitude for the most basic things like food to eat and a roof over your head is important, especially when the world is constantly changing. Reminding yourself about what you have, rather than what you don’t have, can help you get through tough times. Gratitude can help you move forward, not backward, and land butter-side up in the game of life. How Gratitude Can Help You Through Hard Times by Robert Emmons is an inspiring read with terrific tips for practicing gratitude each day.
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