It’s not uncommon for many of us to feel a sense of uncertainty given our current environment being primarily controlled by COVID-19. Weeks ago, we were hit by a hurricane that feels as if it came without forecast.
Now, we find ourselves in the middle of the storm. The best thing we can do right is not to waste the power of a good storm to refresh and bring about positive change. Although we can’t control the rough waters ahead, we do have control over the path we take.
When you feel pressured for answers, the world is urging you to look inside for clarity. It’s willing you to take these brief and fleeting few moments to consider your power to create change.
You can use this storm to optimize yourself and your business.
These moments change your life. They are a brief glimpse into what could be despite the noise of what usually is. They are portals to the future. If you get one, a glimpse and a moment of pause, take it as a sign to make the changes toward what you see.
Adjusting your sails does come at a cost, however, and this will be both mentally and physically challenging.
We will get through this time with the right proactive strategies and measures to help ourselves and our businesses. If you choose to leverage the full power of the storm, you may find yourself getting out better than you went in.
Many may have a tendency to go straight into survival mode, but I’m here to help you thrive, rather than survive, in uncertainty. I have a lot of experience in this department, both myself, and working with others.
When all of this started, we wanted to bring people together to Mastermind around what you can do to optimize your business and life, and to stay focused on what you can control during these trying times.
The goal of every Expert Mastermind session is to explore tools to remain proactive, strategic, caring and focused as leaders.
I invited my friend Laura Slinn from Avalon Empowerment to chat about how we can not only survive, but thrive, in uncertain times. Laura has built a business around her journey of change and growth from uncertainty.
Large teams are certainly facing their own challenges in today’s climate, but now is the prime time for them to grow from these trying times and build their businesses around their own journey of change.
The equation that will change your life
Cause is greater than effect. Which is why C > E is an equation that will give you a new meaning to how you function on a day-to-day basis.
In any given moment, we are either in cause or in effect. Cause is taking accountability and responsibility for everything that has happened to you in your life and/or knowing that the situation you’re in can somehow serve a deeper purpose.
Effect is when you’re blaming everything that is happening to you on an outside force, whether that’s another person, a pandemic or the government. As you can probably tell by your Facebook feeds right now, everyone is feeling an effect mindset, and it’s OK.
This is an equation with results over reasons. The thing about successful people is that they’ll always choose results.
As a real estate team, there isn’t a reason in the world why you’re at the effect of your own results right now. But, what you need to do for yourself, your business and your team is to get into cause.
You need to move into a place of cause, and choose results over reasons. As soon as you move into cause, your opportunities will open up.
Recognize that most people we know are in effect, and they’re content being in effect and keeping others there with them, while constantly complaining and worrying.
By getting into cause, you will recognize that this situation is here to help you grow and make you a better person, not only personally, but also professionally.
How your response empowers others
Right now, more than ever, team leaders need to know what their abilities to respond to an event are. The formula E+R = O stands for an Event that occurs, your Response to it and the Outcome you want to come from it.
We look at events in the world and say that the outcome was completely driven by the event. But that is not actually true. Outcome is more driven by the response to the event rather than the event itself.
Your energy and your response dictates how the people around you respond. Ask yourself, “How am I responding and showing leadership to my team?”
The power of this equation is that the outcome is what we focus on. If we’re responsive, we’re focusing on the outcome we want to get to.
If you’re not in an optimal mindset, you’re not responsive — you’re reactive. This means that your decisions will be based on fear, stress and negativity rather than the ease and calmness you’ll find when your decisions are based on being responsive.
If you lose your power to impact an outcome in your life, you lose all power you have in the situation.
Find your focus
All fear and anxiety comes from focusing on the things we don’t want and putting that out into the future.
We can do all the predicting we want about what’s going to happen tomorrow or watch the news or read the conspiracy theories, but at the end of the day, no one knows what’s going to happen tomorrow.
If you’re going to make something up in your head, wouldn’t you rather it be something that you like and makes you feel good?
Our brains are not wired to thrive — they’re wired to survive. We are wired to go back into our pain and trauma because the brain says: “You’ve been there before and you’ve survived it.”
The brain will always tell you to bet on the bad and to focus on the disaster films in our head. It does that to keep us safe, but it also does it whenever we’re facing uncertainty.
As a team right now, you need to be able to take a deep breath and override those fears. You need to create the future you want to have.
Kathleen Black is the CEO of Kathleen Black Coaching and Consulting in Oshawa, Ontario, Canada. Connect with her on Instagram at either @kathleenblackcoaching, @thetop1percentlife, or through her Web site ItTakesa.Team.
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