Using this time to slow down, review & recalibrate

With everything that’s going on in the world (and nearly one billion of us isolating at home) you might be hearing — or feeling — that you need to make the most of it. That now is the time to write that book, finish that course, or start that business.

But the thing is: it’s not easy to focus. We’re understandably anxious about the coronavirus / Covid-19, which doesn’t lead easily to creative energy and flow.

Most of us (if we’re not a key worker out saving the world, usually for little more than minimum wage) will be spending more time at home than usual. But there’s a high chance we’re looking after others in our family, entertaining kids, or spending more time with our partner.

Our screen time has also likely doubled in the last few weeks as we check the news and try to decipher what’s going on in the world.

So what I want to say is this: don’t beat yourself up if this isn’t a creative, productive and life-changing period of your life.

If you do find the conditions come together for you to sit down and write, paint, work, or create — that’s wonderful news. I’m so excited to see what you build during this time and how you can help and inspire others.

But whether we find our creative energy or not, one of the most valuable things we can all do at this time is to slow down, isolate, and take stock of where we are.

We can use it as an opportunity to change the pulse of our lives and do less. Not to start projects or improve ourselves, but to just be.

A year or so ago, I wrote about the value of doing an occasional life audit — making the time and space to sit down, breathe, and think about how life is going right now.

It’s a better time than any to ask the important questions. These start with:

• How healthy and strong is my body?
• How balanced and calm is my mind?
• How are my relationships with my loved ones?
• How fulfilled am I creatively?
• Am I where I want to be right now?
• What is out of balance?
• And what needs recalibrating?

Sitting still for half an hour, putting away your devices, and asking these questions with no distractions might sound simple and easy, but it’s one of the most important things you can do right now.

Rather than starting a million-dollar empire, check in with yourself. Listen to your mind and body.

Review where you are, understand what’s going well and what needs changing, and take the first steps to recalibrate the important areas in your life.

We can use this time in incredibly impactful ways that can’t easily be measured, caring for others and ourselves.

We can understand ourselves a little better and think about the pivots we want to make in our lives. These can be easy decisions — like spending more time with our siblings — or more difficult ones, like changing jobs or making other big life changes.

If we are fortunate enough to be able to stay at home and self-isolate, we can look for pockets of time to spend in our own minds. We can also look forward to our favourite things coming back into our lives: hours in coffee shops, brunch with friends, and spending time with older relatives.

And, of course, we can appreciate the little things that remain in this new reality: rest, time with family, the first cup of tea of the day, spending an afternoon with a good book, baths, candles, and baking. They’re not little things at all.

I made some free Life Audit Worksheets that you can download here.