Isolation, Lists and Me
These past few weeks of self isolation have been interesting for me. I live alone and due to medication I’m having to be extra careful so shops are out and my only real life exposure to the outside world is my daily run which is keeping me sane (although running in London at the moment feels slightly like playing an alternative version of dodgeball). I’m now almost in week 6 and have had to do a fair bit of coaching of myself on my COVID isolation journey. This is one of the things I have learnt so far …
I truly love my ‘to-do' lists but they don’t always serve me best. Anyone who knows me knows that me and lists go together like wine and cheese (yes I am writing this during self isolation!). Over the past few weeks I’ve found my lists are leaving me despondent. I’m very good at creating them, but at the moment I'm finding them all a bit overwhelming rather than motivating like they used to. So I’ve started a new thing. I haven’t got rid of my lists - no need to throw the baby out with the bath water - but I am now starting each day with a cup of coffee, a notepad and two questions.
1. What three things would be meaningful to me today?
A few wide ranging(!) examples, they can big or small - review work document, take recycling out, call Angela
Its the quality not the quantity … isn’t it annoying when sayings turn out to hold true sometimes?!
2. What am I grateful for at this moment in time?
E.g. - supportive friends, comfort of my home, financial stability
Its been interesting seeing how these change day by day when I really focus on the here and now
I’ve found that these two ‘simple’ questions help me focus on the day. I also generally do one of the things on my 'meaningful list' almost immediately making me feel like I’ve got the day off to a good start.
So what have been my key take aways?
Breaking down challenges into bite size chunks and then only putting a few things on the plate at one time can be helpful
It can also be helpful to get things out of the head - either onto paper or talk it through with someone who is independent but trusted like a coach - the internal conversations have a tendency to get a bit circular!