You might have had enough emails or social media about coronavirus so far. Before writing this one, I really asked myself: do I want to add more to this? There is already so much out there, some I find very good, some I find not so good… And I also wondered “who am I to reach out and speak about this?”.
Then I remembered that the purpose of my blog is to share my coaching journey, my reflections, and whether I want it or not, Covid-19 is part of it. And I also realized that I was happy to hear from people that I trust and value in my coaching community, and if you haven’t unsubscribed, I assume you value what I have to say and might find some food for your own thoughts in my writing. So here we go with some reflections and some support offered at the end.
What I noticed
For over a week, I have been observing, reflecting, wanting to respond rather than react. That’s my default mode.
I noticed my own reactions, the waves of gentle frustration, fear and anxiety (not panic) at each new disruptive announcement (major events cancellations, then flights ban, then boarder closing, then school closing, then confinement, etc…), or when reading news about how serious the situation is, each wave then going away, like the water going back into the ocean. And the cycles will continue for a while I am sure.
I noticed that I fell into some sort of apathy. Apart from serving my current clients and the mandatory things I had to do, I felt a lot of resistance to follow my plan and achieve my tasks. I just felt like taking a break, maybe that was my own way to cope in this crazy week. I am now in the process of setting some actions in order to get back on track, get back to find some purpose, to serve others and keep working on my business with new rules.
I noticed a lot of judgment out there, including my own. It’s so much easier to judge how others respond than to acknowledge our own vulnerability and humanity. Fear is showing up in different ways. Its expression might be piling up an excessive amount of food, supplies, … and Toilet Paper. It might be denying the severity of the situation. It might be arguing on Facebook (although we don’t need to be scared to do that). It might be judging others for how they respond to their fear. Recognizing and acknowledging our own fear counter intuitively helps to be more serene with the whole thing and to be more intentional and empowered in how we want to act.
Switching from judgment to curiosity
Often in meditation or mindfulness, we practice observing without judging. This helps differentiate ourselves from our thoughts and emotions rather than “being” these thoughts and emotions. And this tends to naturally calm down and bring clarity. Right now, I found that observing and coming from a place of genuine curiosity about this unprecedented situation was helpful to stay grounded.
What have your learned so far from the situation? About yourself, about the world, about adaptation, about trust, about stepping into the unknown?
What do you Need?
We all need different things at the moment. Some need to take action, some need to be reassured, some need to reassure others, some need to serve, some need to laugh, some need to connect.
What do YOU need right now?
Offering some support:
I want to offer some support at no charge to anyone in my community (yes that means you) who needs it or just wants it:
- 1 on 1 coaching call: I won’t tell you what to do, I don’t have answers, I have questions, paradigm shifts, distinctions that will help you be more empowered, figure out what you need to do and who you need to be in this period. I feel it is a great time to trust that each of us has what it takes to go through this and to draw out our best and unique ways to move on. If you’d like to have a coaching call, just reach out.
- I’d like to start a weekly group coaching call on zoom to support entrepreneurs, small business owners and professionals to process, brainstorm, get clearer on how to adapt, get out of their own way, get into action, and get some support from others in the group. If you are interested in being part of this, just reach out and I’ll keep you informed.
Eventually, I am sending you some warm thoughts to you and your families.
Take great care,
Evan Bernache 