Hi, everyone, 

It's been one year since I packed a tote to quarantine in Connecticut for two weeks.

Who remembers that brigade of red Ferraris I wrote to you about in our first newsletter?

At the time, the uncertainty was crippling. It left my feeling stressed, anxious, and powerless over so many directions in my business and life. More on that, here. 

Today, I wanted to dive into what ambiguity does to our brain, and a few tips I’ve learned over this past year which have helped me cope with uncertainty – that I hope will be helpful for you to consider as well.

THE LANGUAGE OF LEADERSHIP

Our brains perceive ambiguity as a threat, so they try to protect us by diminishing our ability to focus on anything other than creating certainty. This means that instead of exhausting ourselves trying to feel certain, it’s actually more effective not to attempt to create certainty. While there’s no doubt that we’re living in challenging times, resisting our current reality doesn’t allow us to move into a growth mindset where we can learn, grow, and ultimately feel better. It’s annoying but nonetheless true: What we resist persists!

THE WEEKLY FLOURISH

So how can we cope when things feel so out of control? Here are a few of my favorite strategies along with supporting articles should you want to go deeper into these topics.  

GRATITUDE 

Upgrading your gratitude practice might seem simple, but it was so powerful. Focusing my gratitude specifically on the things within my control slowly helped me take my power back. In this article I share three practices that can help you upgrade your gratitude practice today. 

VALUES

I turned to my values and used them as filters for my decisions. For example, my values are humor and service. I was definitely leaning into humor personally and professionally, but I needed to find new ways to serve at the highest level. It’s so important to me to share tools that can help you suffer less at work, which is exactly why we created this newsletter as well as our group coaching program Activate. 

COMMUNITY

Team meetings, 1:1 touch bases, Weekly Quarantini check-ins, The Hive, @hayvncoworking, so many Facetimes, John The Zoom fatigue is REAL, but don't cancel the good ones y'all. Touching base frequently goes a long way. 

SUPPORT 

COVID made it abundantly clear that every person copes differently. I’m sure you watched as some of your friends or family went into overdrive, trying to do-list themselves out of crisis, while others might have felt incapable of finishing a single thing. Having the tools to understand how to respond to stress makes it easier to know how to deal with uncertainty in a way that feels good for you. 

GREATNESS TAKES GUIDANCE

The juxtaposition of trauma and innovation that was revealed all at once is still being processed by many (including myself!). The lessons learned are still rolling in and it is important that we continue to pay attention. From positive psychology to Dare to Lead and Strengths-Based development, the tools we teach have never been more important in helping our clients thrive and process these uncertain times. 

What’s helped you cope most this year? 

If you feel like sharing, I'm all ears. 

Carrie & Team Leadology