Reflecting on the Corona-Coaster

We have all been riding the corona coaster for a while now and can't really see a clear end as we go in and out of lockdowns but after over a year of this experience I think we can look back and review how we initially responded, adapted and how we are leading ourselves and our teams now. I love a story so I am sharing mine with you now in the hope that you might like to take a moment to reflect on your own journey and perhaps share it with me too.

My corona-coaster

When Covid hit. March 2020, I was three days away from boarding a plane to New Zealand for 2 weeks of training. All of a sudden, the borders closed, and all my work was cancelled. Months of bookings were gone. I am a face-to-face type of person; I love being in the room when I’m training and facilitating, so I was unsure how I could transition my work online.

One of my guiding principles is about focusing on what I can control, not what I can’t. So that is literally what I did. Each day, I focused my mind and efforts on what I could influence. The most important steps initially were to connect with and support my team, giving them space to navigate their responsibilities with their families, support them in their roles and set up regular times to meet.

I also prioritised my self-care and created a sticky note list on my bathroom mirror – that had words like Appreciate, Meditate, Activate, Hydrate and Elevate. They were visual reminders to take of myself each day. It was so easy to get swamped by fear and news but focusing on that only reinforced the things I couldn’t control and feeding the primitive parts of the brain.

Instead, we took things one day at a time, or one task at a time and did our best. Surprisingly the past year we’ve had the busiest year ever and I have learnt that I can support and reach even more people by moving online and learning new skills.

This week I celebrated my second lock down birthday and reflected on the year that has been.

I am so proud of the many people that have jumped online to attend training courses both individually and for their teams and organisations and moved positively through their days. Leading oneself and others is so key to our professional and personal lives and I am excited about the year ahead (although I would like to spend my next birthday surrounded by people!)

Be well! and do feel free to share your corona coaster story with me too.

If you would like to have a free 15 minute conversation with me please book yourself into my diary here.