Building Resiliency Through the Pandemic As “stay at home” orders extend across the country, and we begin to be more personally impacted by COVID-19, our ability to remain optimistic and hopeful becomes increasingly challenged. We continue to experience expectations of productivity and effectiveness in “work from home” environments, managing virtual teams and meeting deliverables. One of humanity’s most powerful survival skills is our ability to build resilience. Resilience means adapting well in the face of adversity and is associated with a mindset that recognizes our capacity to grow through life-altering and stressful events. According to Dr. Arielle Schwartz, “Resilience is not a trait that you either have or do not have; it is a set of strategies that can be learned and practiced by anyone.” Dr. Schwartz offers her framework of six pillars of resilience: Growth mindset: Cultivating an understanding that life experiences, whether positive or negative, provide ongoing opportunities for learning and development. Emotional Intelligence: Recognizing that you will experience feelings of fear, exhaustion, anger, sadness and a host of other emotions as a part of this global trauma we are living through. This is normal and part of your innate resilience. Gaining tools to navigate through this process allows you to reclaim your balance. Community Connections: This pillar has been the most dramatically altered during the pandemic as we have previously associated “connection” with in-person interaction. We now must be intentional at creating virtual connections. We may be physically distancing but social solidarity is essential. Self-expression: Activating the creative part of your brain, the prefrontal cortex through writing, art, dance, music increases access to the hormone oxytocin which helps you feel more social connection and relational resonance. Embodiment: Our bodies need to process stressful events through breath and movement. When these natural impulses are ignored the biological effects of stress persist. Activities such as yoga, meditation, and mindfulness breathing build resilience. Choice and Control: The belief and acceptance that there are events in our life that are completely outside our control. Resilience comes with knowing that there are still things in your life that you do have control over. Building resilience is a daily practice of small behaviors that support your physical, mental, emotional, social and spiritual health. In taking microsteps every day, you will start to feel stronger, optimistic, capable and connected to others.
Finding our way in the New Normal… As the month of March began, we were watching the Coronavirus spread across China and Europe but here across the pond, we continued to operate as business as usual. I look back at notes I took at client meetings and coaching calls during the first week of March and it feels like it was a different reality. Indeed it was… since then, our inboxes and feeds have been exploding with news of the spread of the virus across Europe, U.S. and North America. Restrictions are being put in place daily to flatten the curve. We are trying to find a new rhythm of life navigating COVID-19. We are experiencing the metamorphosis of a new world order. With this sudden dramatic shift in our daily routine, our brains revert to our most primitive state, the reptilian brain. “What is going on? How can this be happening? This isn’t real. This doesn’t make any sense? I need to protect myself”. The reptilian brain is the oldest part of our brain, developed in primitive humans to make decisions to protect us from the lions, tigers and bears. When we are in our primitive brain we are reactive, we take a stance of fighting, fleeing, appeasing or freezing. None of these stances can help us navigate this new normal. If you have been reading my blog over the last few years, you have seen some posts about Conversational Intelligence® or C-IQ. Conversational Intelligence is about moving from the “I-Centric” primitive brain to the “We-Centric” prefrontal cortex part of the brain. The capabilities that reside in the prefrontal cortex are empathy, creativity and innovation. These are the skills we need to find our way in the new normal. Photo source: Conversational Intelligence® for Coaches What does it take to move from the primitive brain to the prefrontal cortex? Recognize you are in your primitive brain and take several breaths. This calms the nervous system and slows down the cortisol which is the hormone activated by this fear response. Reduce the amount of media you consume about the pandemic (don’t scroll your phone before bed or immediately when you wake up). This allows your brain to start and end the day with more optimism. Reach out to friends and family members who are finding their way in this new normal. We may have “stay at home” orders in place but humans are social beings. We need social solidarity to move to the prefrontal cortex. Take Microsteps of creating new habits. There are SO MANY resources out there but I really like what Thrive Global is curating in their new series, “Thriving in the New Normal” that offers Microsteps about sleep, nutrition, stress, and more to help us proactively strengthen our immune system and build resilience. During this time, our initial tendency is to go to that primitive brain and hunker down, hoping that it will pass. We all know now that we are in this together for the long haul. We are co-creating our new normal. If you are in your primitive brain, feeling lost, stuck, not knowing what steps to take, let’s chat. I am here for you and look forward to co-creating the new normal with empathy, creativity and innovation. A new normal that works for all of us.
