Surviving or Thriving?

Grief, anger, frustration, resentment, fear, disbelief; many of us are feeling those at the moment.

Every part of our lives has turned upside down, over night.  Many of us find ourselves working at home cut off from our teams and normal moments in a work day.  We now mainly enjoy friends and family via a screen, and we are beginning to emerge to meet face to face.  Our social lives of live music, theatre, cinemas, restaurants and cafés have been paused for months, to begin to emerge again with uncertainty and fear.  Even how we exercise has changed; no swimming pools or gyms.  This is a huge adjustment in just a short time, as the rules around what we can and cannot do are constantly evolving, as the weeks roll on. This has a huge impact on our minds and our bodies.  A time when our usual way of living has been taken away, and instead we must find new ways of working, connecting, socialising, and keeping physical and mentally well.  A recent CIPD (Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development) report* suggests 52% of people with a mental health condition say it has worsened during this pandemic.

People First.

One of the three pillars of Loafspark is People First. By this we mean creating working environments, and growing mindsets that support thriving. Through inner personal development we create greater external impact. We maximise positive impact on ourselves, others and the world, if we better understand the motivations and mindsets that drive our habits, choices and behaviours.

It is possible to thrive in the midst of a crisis. 

I have been experiencing grief, anger, frustration, resentment, disbelief, confusion, fear and overwhelm, but only mildly.  For a natural extrovert, I’ve been fairly content to stay at home, and I have found myself adjusting quickly to juggling work, home schooling an 8 and 11-year old, looking out for parents who are shielded inside, and trying to support my local community.  I am not superhuman, I was not born being able to thrive in a crisis, even if I do like the drama they bring, a little!  Through personal challenges I realise how much I have learnt to be able to thrive better than I would have expected, during this crisis. Don’t get me wrong, I feel as challenged as everyone, I tire from the juggling, but I really am OK with what is happening around me. For a natural extrovert that thrives on human interaction and connection I have really been OK.  My default for many years was to get very busy in the drama of a crisis, and deal with the fall out when I had reached exhaustion; not a great thriving approach.

I have been reflecting on what has helped me thrive during this crisis of gigantic proportions.

I realised that the path of self-discovery and development accelerated eight years ago when my second daughter was born, with a disability and life threatening health issues.  It was a crisis that I hadn’t predicted, prepared for, or welcomed.  I was thrown into chaos to desperately do all I could to keep her alive.  That was my biggest worry for 5 years.  Every day was unpredictable and uncontrollable; being blue lighted to hospital many times.  Those years were dark and challenging, and I knew I had to find ways of coping fast, or I would sink, and that wasn’t in my plan either!  I found myself turning to the eastern practices of yoga and mindfulness, as well as more western psychological approaches.  They really worked.  I am a natural learner and was curious to understand why these approaches worked in a crisis, so I became a qualified yoga teacher, and a qualified Mindfulness Teacher from Exeter University, part of my MSc in Psychological Therapies.  I bring this teaching and experience into my work, developing thriving organisational cultures and leadership.

Why am I sharing this? 

What I have learnt enables me to thrive in a challenging times, so I wanted to share that, so others can learn to thrive too.  We can’t always choose what life throws at us, but we can choose how we respond.  Please get in touch if you would like to explore ways to help you, your team, or organisation better thrive in these strange times. Sign up at www.loafspark.com for regular updates on what we are offering, including my new course Surviving or Thriving? that will is available online through Hawkwood College, starting 21st July https://www.hawkwoodcollege.co.uk/event/surviving-thriving-online/.

*CIPD Working Lives Survey 2020

By Sarah King, Loafspark Founder