It goes without saying that this has been a week unlike any other.
Covid-19, the virus that every person in the world now knows about, has hit the globe with a vengeance.
And wherever you are in the world, the same – previously unimaginable – situation has been unfolding…
The world is, essentially, shutting down.
And people, understandably, are frightened.
People are frightened for their health, and the health of their loved ones.
But people are also frightened for their lives, in all those aspects outside that of one's health.
People are frightened about their ability to keep earning, their ability to keep feeding their families, their ability to survive the economic impacts that this virus is having.
And THAT fear … that legitimate and worthy concern … is spreading considerably faster than the virus itself.
In fact, it IS a virus. That fear, and the way in which people are acting upon it, is a virus of another kind.
Panic buying is catching. Supermarket shelves are emptying, so those that would never have considered stockpiling before, suddenly fear that they NEED to … “just in case”.
Stock market plunges are catching. One sale, one share drop, leads to another … and another … and another.
Even DECISIONS are catching. One government responds one way, others follow. Do any of them KNOW the best solution? No … because this is unprecedented. And perhaps there isn't one best solution that will suit every country.
Yet many decisions right now are being based on those already made, by others, elsewhere…
So what can we do to protect ourselves from these TWO viruses?
For Covid-19, we – the general populace – don't have the ability to cure or destroy it.
We have to trust in our doctors and our scientists; that they will be able to do so.
And in the meantime, we have to follow the recommendations of our leaders to limit its impacts….
We have to stay at home. We have to isolate ourselves. We have to wash our hands as frequently as possible. We have to do everything that we can to limit the spread of this virus.
But the OTHER virus? That virus of fear, which is leading us into actions that are perhaps even more detrimental?
This one WE have the power to change…
This one we even, maybe, have the power to destroy?
How? By LEADING, rather than following. By ADAPTING, to our new reality. By being POSITIVE, even in the face of such uncertainty. By believing. By sharing. By helping one another.
If we follow others in actions derived from fear … we can follow others in positive actions too.
And those positive actions might just give the world the boost it needs to get through this.
Talk to your neighbours, your clients, your suppliers…
We’re all in this together. There are no secrets or surprises; we all know the concerns that others are likely to be facing.
These next few weeks will be tough, whilst we all learn to adapt to our current, vastly changed, reality. So these next few weeks are the most important for us to be supporting one another.
Be open, and offer to help where you can.
Offer to buy groceries for your neighbour, so they don't feel the need to stockpile.
Offer to pay your suppliers earlier, to keep their cash flow moving.
Offer to adjust your fixed contracts, your fixed hours, your fixed workload … to take the pressure off those that need it, temporarily, to enable them to keep afloat ... whilst they also still maintain your services … thus helping keep you afloat.
Offer something that may help … and they may well offer that same thing to their neighbours, or suppliers, or clients. That help may just catch on, and spread quicker to those that need it most right now.
Take stock of your new environment, and start to adapt…
Just as important as being there for one another right now … is being ready to ADAPT.
Because it is by adapting that we will be able to kill that second virus … that fear virus … the quickest.
No-one knows what lies ahead right now. None of us know how long this might last, or what changes this may bring to our lives in the future.
Because, we can't predict the future … and we can't control it. But, we also don't need to…
We just need to control our NOW. We just need to control how we adapt to our NEW reality … however long it may, or may not, last for.
We still all have experience, resources, skills, knowhow, connections…
We still have the ability to solve problems.
And people still HAVE problems. Their problems may well have changed from those they had a few weeks ago … but people still have problems that they need solving.
And some of those problems, YOU will have the skills, and the knowhow, and the connections, to be able to solve.
So we just need to figure out what these new problems are.
We just need to adapt to our new environment, and work out how we can change what we do, perhaps for whom we do it, and maybe even how we go about it.
But we CAN adapt. Evolution proves it.
So this is the time to stand up and be a leader, in your own corner of the world.
Be the leader in terms of adapting to our new environment: show others that we can all still keep going, we can all still help each other … that we all still have skills that others don't, and those skills are still needed by others.
Get straight back onto the path of finding your financial security, by finding the NEW problems that your skills can solve, and getting out there and solving them.
And finally … SHARE what you are doing
Tell your friends, your neighbours, your clients, your suppliers.
Let people know what you are doing.
Let people know that you are ADAPTING. That you are still able to solve their PROBLEMS; that you still have skills, and knowledge, and knowhow, that is still of use.
Show them that you are not waiting, or worrying, or wishing … you are LEADING.
And show them know that they can, too.
Start spreading a new kind of virus. One of belief, and positivity.
And if you're unsure how to adapt … how to find these new problems you can solve, or how to be a leader in your corner of the world … get in touch. I can help. That's exactly the type of problem that I can solve.
Stay strong. We are all in this together, we'll get through this together … and just maybe, we'll all come out of it stronger.
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