Bruce Kasanoff* says there has never been a more important time to look after ourselves and those around us.
All around the world, we are rushing to adjust to a new reality.
Nations are switching to remote — or no — work with little or no opportunity to adjust.
Dealing with this change isn’t simply about finding a corner of your house in which to work, or becoming a power user of Slack and Zoom.
You also have to deal with the emotional impacts of having the entire world rearrange itself.
In my past experiences with loss and traumatic changes, I’ve noticed all sorts of negative side effects.
You get short-tempered and anxious. Your stomach hurts. You eat or drink too much.
Maybe your vision narrows, so to speak, and all you see is what scares you.
These are all normal reactions, but they can be as problematic as the events that triggered them, unless you practice self-compassion and self-care.
When all of us are experiencing them simultaneously, it gets even harder.
For these reasons and more, I’d like to suggest that we all agree to go slower and be less productive.
It’s not fashionable to say “slow down”, but that’s exactly what I’m suggesting we all should do.
There will be a time to race out of our homes and rebuild, but now isn’t that time.
A far better use of your energy is to focus on health and welfare and emotional connection.
Help others get through this. Help yourself get through this.
Instead of trying to be as efficient as possible working from home, try to be as healthy as possible.
Instead of keeping your team firing on all cylinders, try to keep your team supported and cohesive.
We all need time to adjust, to process the shock of having our world turned upside-down, and to get some much-needed perspective.
Let’s all cut ourselves a bit of slack.
*Bruce Kasanoff is an executive coach and social media ghostwriter for entrepreneurs. He can be contacted at kasanoff.com.
This article first appeared at kasanoff.com.
