The pandemic has taught us some tough lessons. Although, it’s been a very personal journey for each of us, wading through the lockdown, we can all agree that despite all resistance, we as a collective and as individuals were forced to slow down and look at things differently.
As you read this, many of us are either reemerging from our pandemic hibernation or are already on our way to accepting the stretching affects of the virus on our lives. Either ways, a lot among us have battled fiercely.
Some were locked away at home alone and know what it is like to battle loneliness, while some were at the forefronts and saving lives. Some were stuck in homes with people they can’t stand and then there were those who lost their very source of livelihood and were bereft of food. Some were lucky to be with people they love, yet had their own battles. Nonetheless, we each proved to be the heroes in our own ways!
However, as always, things will change and we will go back to living the lives we once knew. At this point, we can’t wait to get there but can we all take a moment and reflect on the personal victories and lessons learnt?
It’s in these tough times that we are pushed to the limits, to get creative and to make the most of our circumstances. And so, here are a few takeaways that we all can ponder over and incorporate into lives post the COVID-19.
- Self care: We come first.
Our mental, emotional and physical health is far more precious than we perceived. Hence forward, we must take extraordinary care of ourselves and not feel guilty for taking some time off. Our hygiene, overall health and rest cannot be taken for granted. It is by no means selfish but rather selfless as we cannot give anything to our loved ones unless we are full! Imagine a health worker with corona trying to help their patients. That’s precisely how we seem when we put ourselves second, doing more harm than good!
Each day ask yourself — what did I do for myself today?
2. Soulful work: Doing what makes us happy
Doing a job that just pays bills but sucks out your health, social life and tarnishes your relationships sounds more like the mantra we were living by. However, during the lockdown, I noticed that I was filled with energy while I did what made me happy and can be turned into a profession/project! Work becomes play when we enjoy it and feel a sense of fulfilment through it.
So the next time you take up a project ask yourself — Is it energising me or draining me?
3. Happiness of eliminating the unnecessary
How many of us have found that certain things that we thought we couldn’t do without were actually proved to be unnecessary? It could be anything, including upholding an image or as trivial as owning that branded dress. It’s all good until we are still using things rather getting used by them. Be it at home, work place, mentally , emotionally or any other aspect, we can derive pleasure from eliminating anything that isn’t helping us lead an optimal life.
Ask yourself — Is it necessary, fulfilling or helpful in the long run?
4. Getting back to the core
Whether we like it or not, we now know what we value most personally. These are our core values that we live by. For each of us, it might look different. But these are the things we strive for and keep us going. I also like to call these my mottos. Eg- I choose to be a body work therapist, I choose to have a non-judgment outlook. Each aspect of our life can have a different motto and we need to keep reviewing them ever so often as we keep growing each day.
Ask every month — What’s my motto about this? What am I choosing to move towards?
5. Conscious living
This the secret of real living. Most of us have been jerked out of our autopilot mode during this pandemic. Earlier we did things because they were part of the routine, the trend, what others said or simply because it was what everybody did. However, now that we’ve lived for and by ourselves with limited resources, we realize that we have a choice- a choice to think and feel what we REALLY want. Instead of moving by with automatic thoughts, we are choosing and thereby taking the power back!
Ask — What is it that I really feel and want? Am I being driven by outside forces or am I making my own choices?
From the above it’s obvious that most of these new ways push us to look at the world from within rather than outside in. That’s because we navigate through this journey of life by our internal lenses. Despite external stimuli, each person reacts in accordance with their inner world, hence it’s only natural to tend to the inside first!