The state of the world is shifting rapidly, and as a result, many of us are finding ourselves in changed circumstances. The uncertainty and constant change can lead to anxiety and a sense of emotional overwhelm, especially as we attempt to make sense of what is happening.

Perhaps you are contemplating more frequent working from home in the coming months, or are already exploring the option of self-isolating. Certainly, these are strange and unusual times we are living in with things shifting on an almost hourly basis.

After many requests for help from colleagues, friends and clients, I decided to share my thoughts and suggestions at this time. Please note - I am not in any way trivialising the issues we are now facing. Rather, I wish to provide some hope for those of us feeling anxious or worried, for ourselves or our loved ones.

Reframing for Adults - Making the most of additional time

With additional time due to social distancing or self-isolating, you may find yourself absorbing more news information. Staying informed is important, but can also lead us down a path of information overload quickly and feed any fears or worries we may be experiencing. (A small note - it’s okay to remove yourself from social media, or limit your consumption of this form of media. By all means stay informed, but protect your well-being).

Rather than using your additional time feeling fearful or finding yourself lost in the labyrinth of news sites, my suggestion is to embrace this time as an opportunity to invest in yourself and make the most of the additional time you now have available.

How to do this? Here are some ideas;

Learn something new - you could read a book, enrol in an online course, listen to a podcast or even watched a TEDTalk or two.
Start a conversation (via message, email or video conferencing) with a colleague you’ve not spoken to before and each share your expertise.
Decide now is the time to up level elements of your career and life, and take the first few steps to do so
Commit to a new project or development opportunity - it could be within your work context, or a side hustle.
Write your bucket list
Take this opportunity to let go of some mindset stuff that has been holding you back
Tackle a creative project you’ve been dreaming about
Check off all those decluttering tasks you’ve been meaning to get to
Reach out to a friend you’ve not been in contact with for awhile - ask how they’re going, find out what's happening in their life.
Start a gratitude journal to help foster mindfulness and joy, or start a daily journaling practice (not sure where to start? Click here for my daily journaling prompts
Have a meaningful conversation with a loved one about your hopes and dreams, and then ask about theirs too.
Book a call to chat to a career coach / mentor (that’s me!) to clarify your direction and build your confidence so when things get back to normal (which they will), you’ll be ready with a clear vision of what you want, and the confidence to make it happen

Many of us are being called to care for others, as a partner, as a parent or both, and manage their emotions and concerns too. Remember to care for YOUR emotional, physical and spiritual needs, as well as those around you. Most of the above suggestions are suitable whether you are a parent or not. But there are some unique challenges facing parents right now too.

Reframing for kids

For children, it can be hard to motivate them when their routine is disrupted. Where usually they are at school, if they are home instead the lure of playing with toys or devices can be intense. Reframing the social distancing or isolation as a staycation can assist both them and you!

Depending on where you live and the duration of self-isolation required, schooling or educational pursuits may not be a priority. In which case, a staycation approach can be ideal. The extra time becomes an opportunity to tackle a couple of things you previously put off for another day. Perhaps a sort out of their toys and belongings, or an opportunity to explore their passions further with an educational bent. Or, as my youngest declared, the perfect opportunity to build an enormous Lego city without the interruption of having to attend school! He’s always looking on the bright side. 😊

Wellbeing and Self Care

“The deepest well can also be drained.” – Swedish Proverb

Looking after yourself is paramount in the current environment, especially if you are caring for others. As a partner, parent or adult child caring for elderly parents, YOU are vital. Ensuring your own wellbeing is a priority ensures are you then able to care for others. What this may look like will vary for each of us, but might include alone time, self-care (in it’s many and varied forms) and/or exercise.

Here are some of the ways you can support your own and your loved ones wellbeing.

Anchors

We all need anchors in our day, which are predictable moments that provide a sense of surety and stability. These moments are especially important for us when times are uncertain or full of change, and are equally important for children.

Personal anchors can include your morning routine, or a regular activity that ‘anchors’ your day. It can be a little window of self-care, whatever that looks like for you. I love my morning routine and it anchors me every day. A combination of time alone for my soul, exercise, gentle yoga, affirmations and a short meditation, all completed before anyone else in my house is up, is a vital part of my daily routine and an anchor in my life.

Maybe your anchor used to be your morning coffee and chat with the barista on the way to work... now perhaps it’s enjoying your beverage of choice at home and using that time to call a friend and check in on them.

Anchors are equally important for children. Especially when their known daily routine has been upended. Some examples of ways you can include new anchors are;

Eating breakfast together each morning. In normal circumstances this might be impossible, but with kids at home and many of us in working from home to, this anchor becomes more viable.
Eating dinner together as a family around the dining table might usually be a challenge. But with the current changes, might be an anchor you wish to foster or implement.
Another anchor you may be familiar with is nightly stories before bed (either read to the child by you, or quiet reading to themselves for older kids).

Caring for children

As a parent, this can be extra challenging, as we need to still maintain homes and look after our children, and be mindful of their need to be protected from the constantly updating news cycle.

Some of you, like me, may find yourselves with children home. I am fortunate to work from home, so having the kids activities cancelled and potentially home from school is definitely an inconvenience but not substantially career impacting (unlike many of my friends, colleagues and clients).

Many of these friends and colleagues have been reaching out asking for suggestions to keep their children educated and entertained during the self-isolation period. And so, with that in mind, as one parent to another, here I am sharing some ideas of things to do with your kids during this time. Please note, I am not a parenting expert! I’m just sharing a few of the approaches I am using with my own kids.

Getting outside and active

Getting out of the house (weather permitting) is vital for everybody’s wellbeing (and sanity!). My boys need to burn off energy, and I love getting outside for my daily dose of nature and exercise. The challenge presents itself as finding new and varied ways to get out that don’t involve a lot of interaction with others.

Scavenger hunt – going for a walk around your local area with intention to gather or identify certain items adds some fun. If school is cancelled, you can also make it a learning opportunity; find things that you’ve not seen before, or spot things that can then lead into conversations about art, history, architecture, nature and more. This is a great activity for children of all ages, just vary the items they are looking for and the activities too. Pinterest has a great range of picture based scavenger hunts for younger kids as inspiration.
Coin toss walk – take a coin and determine that heads is right and tails is left (or vice versa) and then use it as a guide to which direction you will walk. Every time you come to a crossroads, an intersection or corner, toss the coin! You may find you’re walking in circles (as we were), but it makes the walk a little more fun and you are out of the house.

Adventure walk. This is simply where you take the children on a walk and don’t tell them where they going. My husband does this with our boys all the time and they love it. Ideal for in a very large parkland where the idea of an adventure or discovering something new is plausible.
Tourist in your home town. Drive or walk to a place you have often thought about visiting but never have. Obviously, if you are self-isolating/social distancing, you need to avoid other people so choose wisely. Once you get there, visit as if you are on holidays in another country, i.e. with open eyes and curious minds. This is a little more challenging than the earlier suggestions, but can be a fantastic experience. My youngest particularly loves this. You may wish to ask your children occasionally, ‘If we were in another country, what would we be enjoying most about this?’ We did this one afternoon, walking to a neighbouring suburb, along the sunny waterfront admiring the moored boats. We talked about if we’ve been in Europe, we would’ve snapped 100 photos of the beautiful boats in the marina. Because it was a neighbouring suburb, we took it for granted! This simple afternoon walk helped shift our mindset in a powerful (but easy) way.

Educational Fun Inside

Other times, the weather doesn’t allow for you to be outside. There are plenty of suggestions available all over the web for ideas and activities you can do with family when you are indoors. A quick google will uncover millions of results.

There is one however we are currently enjoying, as it’s a little different. We set ourselves a challenge; an A to Z Country Dinner Challenge. Basically, we created a list of 26 countries, with each letter of the alphabet having a corresponding country starting with the same letter. Working systematically from A, we research about the chosen country, their customs and cuisine. After selecting some appropriate recipes, we cook the cuisine of that country for dinner. (I think I enjoy this challenge more than everybody else!). We have tackled A (Argentina) through to F (Finland) so far. The boys enjoy learning facts about the country we are ‘visiting’ that evening, and we have all enjoyed trying a range of new foods.

Perhaps you’d like to create your own A to Z Country Dinner challenge?

When you need a break

If you are balancing working from home with also caring for your at-home children, there will be times where a suitably educational activity they can do alone (so you can work) will be required.

Here are some ideas that have been welcomed by my kids;

Assign your children (or yourself!) a reading challenge, and invite them to write a book review about the book/s they’ve read.
Play an audiobook, either to rest your voice from ‘teaching’ your little people, or just for your own enjoyment.
Visit the Museum – virtually that is. Check out the 12 Museums that offer Virtual Tours
Screen savers. Whilst I am not an advocate of screens, we all need downtime. An educational show may be required. Netflix has a great selection of educational shows, across many subject areas and suitable for diverse age ranges. Check out the list provided here.

In concluding, these are testing times. I’d like to encourage you to check in with your family, friends, neighbours and anyone else who you think might need support.

Talk through your fears and anxieties with people you trust.

Trust your own intuition, trust your own judgement, be sensible and demonstrate compassion and most of all, kindness for yourself, and others.

Keen to use this additional time to improve your confidence in your career and life?

Through the coaching services I provide, I support women and men to feel clear and confident in their career and life, and would love to support you too. Simply book your 30-minute complimentary online consult with me (via the blue button below) to learn how coaching with me could be the right next step for you.

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