Confusion Now?
June 2020
I'm hoping you are well, and contained. It's been a very unusual time, hasn't it? I've cooked more, talked less, and spent way too much time forecasting the future. Hangin' out in the unknown is very uncomfortable, and an exhausting waste of time.
And now, after the initial panic attack using up all our energy confirming that covid is real, this pandemic is a reality with consequences and big-time changes. We knocked ourself out. We needed a nap. Then lethargy moved in like a purple haze.
The recent reality has 'mandatory' morphing into 'recommended.' Individual decisions need to be made:
- Still wear masks or gloves? Designer styles and colors now available everywhere
- Is 6' apart too much? Too little?
- How to navigate PPP, PUA, UI, EIDL, et al
- Work from home or at the office with the team
- How many ways can you cook chicken? Time to dine out?
- What will your 'new normal' look like? What will be better? Different?
Confusion gets a bad rap. Sure, confusion is uncomfortable. Decisions have consequences. Confusion feels scary...fear-full...high anxiety. Nothing quite makes sense. Life as you once knew it is now only a physical blur.
But wait! What if confusion is actually a good thing, an opportunity for clarity and direction??? Confusion is a high space. Confusion affirms you are on the right track. You're questioning, this is a good thing. Not knowing the single correct way allows you to explore a whole variety of potential solutions. It gives you a broader and deeper understanding of the real priorities involved. You searching your mind for answers creates fertile ground!
Hey, if everything always was routine, how would you grow?
"I try to stay in a constant state of confusion just because of the expression it leaves on my face."
~ Johnny Depp
Confusion can be a powerful drive to figure things out! Clearly, confusion is a great motivator to look deeper and search more vigorously for the answer that is right for you.
Here are 3 steps to help you overcome CONFUSION:
First Step: Sit in it. Accept where you are. Accept the fog. Accept that you don't know. How can you know what's going to happen a month from now? By the Fall? A year from now? You can't. Accept what is.
Second Step: Focus on what you do know...then what you need to know. Do your research. Talk to the people that matter in your life, like your doctor, partner, mentor. Stand firm in knowing what is right/true for YOU. Stay non-judgemental of decisions that are different than yours.
Third Step: Feel grounded with your decision. Commit. Take your first step forward, then another. Know your best metric is your gut, go with how you feel, your truth. Slow and steady...until you feel confident and brave. Claim a timeline to keep you accountable and moving forward. Then as more information comes, adjust.
"Confusion exists. Get comfortable with this."
~ Susan Brooks
The Ultimate Customer Experience SERVES YOU RIGHT™
The I'M ESSENTIAL Project
In these COVID days, weeks, and months, the government has decided who and what services are essential. My friend and colleague, Tom Frank, a culture engineer who consults with restaurants and food services all over the globe, decided that being essential was more than a government label. He started recognizing all those people that serve us and our community in ways that are invisible... and Essential: bus drivers, food servers, grocery store staff, janitors, truck drivers, mail men/women. So, Tom stepped up in creating the Ultimate Customer Service Experience with the I'm Essential Project.
Tom first tested this idea out with a bus driver who was taking a break at a bus stop. Tom thanked him for his work of safety and care, especially on these hot Arizona days. Then Tom handed over the 'I'm Essential' sticker for his shirt. The driver was so delighted he burst out the biggest smile that stayed on his face as he took the wheel and drove off! Recognition matters!!
Today, as you consider moving forward with your (essential) team and (essential) clients, you might want to acknowledge these Essential Heroes in your world with a sticker that says it's so! Consider it an act of kindness, a self-esteem boost.
Tom says defiantly, 'No, I'm not in the sticker business...I simply want to provide a tool that encourages leaders and business owners to use in acknowledging their own Team and Essential Heroes in their world.”
Go, ahead! Make Their Day! Our world can certainly use more smiles!
Tom would love to hear your stories. Connect with him at www.imessentialproject.com.
© 2024 SUSAN L. BROOKS | ALL RIGHTS RESERVED
Sign up for my Changing the face of Aging monthly newsletter!
Sign Up
Privacy Policy