What Now?

This is the question we follow up our “What If” article with.

As a quick recap, we now realise we could come out of Extraordinary Times, difficult times or setbacks with Confidence and Self-Belief. We could become more aligned with our Values and Beliefs, which would empower us to make more positive personal and professional choices. Just imagine living life on Your terms, being and feeling like the Hero and Author of Your Life Story. That’s an exciting prospect.

So, inspired by the possibility of your more positive future, it’s natural to ask What Now? Your future vision may still seem a long way off, but luckily the key is simple:

Start.

Let me help. A good place to start is reflecting on Positives and Negatives from Yesterday and Today. Consider this an Adventure. What Positive and Healthy things do you want to pack in your suitcase, toolbox, or rucksack for your journey towards your What If future? Equally, what things might weigh you down, frustrate you, stress you, not serve you? Let’s leave those things behind. Luggage allowance is, after all, limited. To help, let’s do this in two steps:

Step One – Reflections on Yesterday

These Extraordinary Times have afforded us a unique perspective. Many of our routines have changed beyond all recognition. The way of life we had before now has drastically changed.

I encourage you, therefore, to reflect on how you were going about your daily life before now. How were you using your time and energy?

What was Positive? You’ll want to bring the Positives with you on your journey. Think in terms of Personal life, Work life, Health and Relationships. What was serving you, what were you passionate about? What had a massive positive impact on you physically, mentally, and emotionally. What was it about life before now, that thoroughly lit you up?

Now reflect on the things that didn't serve you well. What were the things that day in, day out frustrated you and caused you stress and anxiety? What didn't fill your soul? Maybe there were compromises that you thought you had to make, but on reflection, you realise you have more choice.

Step Two – Reflections on Today

Bring your attention to the current circumstances. Yes, they are different, difficult even, but what have you learnt? Have these Extraordinary Times shown you a different way of life – more time with family for example, which previously you missed out on because of long working hours and commuting? Maybe you’ve discovered you can effectively, efficiently, and healthily work from home, where previously you didn't think that was possible. So, what positives from today would you like to pack for your adventure into a brighter tomorrow?

Then, again, reflect on what’s not working for you today. You may have discovered you’ve less time for your own thoughts, or discovered how much you value face to face contact with certain individuals.

You're packed!

When you complete the two steps, you'll have an amazing collection of Positive things you'll want to build into your future life. You also know what you'd like to leave behind; what wasn't serving you and in many ways pulling you back from achieving or even thinking about a more positive tomorrow.

Whether you’ve been packing a suitcase, rucksack, or toolbox, you now certainly seem well prepared for your adventure. Most importantly, you're starting to build a picture of what your destination could look like. The excitement is definitely rising, so What Next? You’ll find that out in the final article of this series.

Martin Seville © 2020
www.extraordinary-times.com