Use This Time as Fuel

Apr 1, 2020

It is uncanny how much shelter-in-place orders are like being on a strict retreat. We cannot run anywhere and escape ourselves, our houses and our loved ones. One of the beautiful things about this is immediately, resistance arrises. (It doesn't feel so beautiful).

The days of COVID 19 are our chance for A Reckoning.

We have the ability RIGHT NOW to clean up some of what's been holding us back. This way, when life is in full swing again, we'll be even more powerful and inner-aligned than before...

1. What is your resistance right now?

If your kids difficult to be around, if your relationship is struggling, if you've been spending too much money, if you've neglected your health, or can't make it through the day without alcohol or marijuana, you're feeling it right now. Whatever the pain point is in your regular life that you can so easily distract yourself from is showing up BIG TIME right now.

Rest assured, this isolation is happening FOR YOU. This is our chance to figure it out and strengthen our inner muscles.

One of the things my husband and I have realized is that we've been spending too much money on frivolous things in daily life. We say yes to every opportunity to travel, we go out to dinner more than we need to, and we order things we don't need on Amazon. Eek.

As a result of this time, we've realized how much more we could save if we keep this habit in check. Being forced to stay in is helping us pay off debt we've been wanting to pay off, so we can start fresh when life opens back up.

And weeks on end of this new normal is helping us shape a behavior. It's reminding us of how little we actually need right now, so we're spending less.

We can use this time to help us reset a new, more empowering behavior for when life is back to normal.

2. Would you like to grow from this, or close your eyes?

I had an honest conversation with a client a few days ago who told me that her elementary school kids are incredibly difficult to be around right now. Both she and her husband have powerful and demanding jobs. She fears part of why they're so challenging to be around is because she hasn't put much time into her children. She's instead poured her entire soul into work.

I really honored her admission.

We discussed how she could use this time as a reset with her family. Certainly, it will be painful as she's establishing new ways to relate to her kids and as they resist the new normal.

She could reset a new normal with how she wants to engage her children before she goes back to working out of the house, again. Her job will still be demanding, but can she find some time during the day that she holds for just her children? Time they can count on, too? Or a fun ritual or habit that they share that further builds their sense of family?

I think so.

If she does the work of repairing the relationships now, she won't feel the burn quite so badly later, when they're teenagers. Even more, the children will feel like their mom made them a priority along with her work. And every kid every where wants to know they're a priority.

How could you use this time to RECKON your point of challenge right now?

3. Be Gentle on Yourself

Recognizing our areas of growth can feel uncomfortable and even embarrassing. And changing a behavior can be extremely difficult.

The benefit of this time is that we are forced to change. Why not use the forced circumstances as the momentum we need to make a shift that will better support us in our daily life going forward?

We will stumble, and some days will be better than others. But it's all about getting back up and trying again the next day. This pandemic is the perfect container to give our new, desired behaviors a try.

Through it all, we be gentle with ourselves, remembering that growth takes time, patience and practice. And there is no better time than right now to do the work.

With love,

Brie