In times where things are unknown (like right now), it's easy to get lost in fearful thoughts of the future. However, this is the very moment when we can take action to maintain our composure and emotional equilibrium.
One tool to use is the Circles of Influence. Think about the things that you can control, the things you care about and the things you have an interest in. When the times feel positive, we have the luxury of spending more time thinking about things we're interested in or that we care about. That's likely to include very important questions like "What's the cricket score?" and "Is chocolate really sustainable?".
When the times feel more challenging however, spending time thinking about things that interest us or we care about but actually have no control over... this is often just code for ruminating, worrying and ending up with anxious thoughts. It's useful to make sure we spend conscious time focusing on the things we can actually control and less time on the things we suddenly find "interesting" (binge watching negative news channels? - you know who you are!).
So here's a quick exercise - in these tricky times, what are three things you can control today? Here's some really simple suggestions: if you're worried about your revenue this year, reach out to key clients and offer help; if you're worried about your team losing productivity, ask them how they are feeling and listen with empathy; and if you're worried about your own health, take a really simple action - guidance from Texas Health is the favourite hand-washing advice we've seen so far.
Standing on the shoulders of giants - our Circles of Influence model is adapted from Stephen Covey's Circles of Influence
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