Start With What You Can Control
For some, the experience of COVID-19 can feel very unnerving, thus causing them to retreat into a cocoon of in-action. Similar to a turtle going into its shell to protect them from harm, the threat of this pandemic can cause individuals to retreat physically and emotionally into their metaphorical or virtual shell.
The problem with retreating
It is well documented that human connection/interaction acts as a protective factor, promoting positive mental health outcomes. With no predicted date and time when the threat of COVID-19 will be over, the coping strategy of retreat is not one that can be sustained in a healthy way for the long term. Therefore connection, whether virtual or in person, is an important component of successfully negotiating this COVID-19 pandemic period. Another element of retreating that doesn’t work, is the negative impact that it has on completing our daily responsibilities. When we are in retreat mode there is a palpable impact on completing assignments for work, school and daily living. Further, life is occurring each day and there are achievements to be had and contributions to be made that are impossible to complete if we continue to cope by retreating.
What is one thing that you can control
To negotiate the COVID-19 pandemic we must be actively and safely engaged in forging a new path forward in the age of Corona. A path that will take daily envelopment and rehearsal of new ways of being and acting. A fundamental step, in mitigating the urge to retreat is to initiate an action towards one thing that you can control. Control, within this context, can be distinguished as an action that you have an all-encompassing dominance in achieving. Something that you are able to complete independently, thus controlling the success and predictability of the outcome. Starting with what you can control allows you to notice that the threat of COVID-19 is not impacting your functionality in every area of your environment thus giving you increments of relief and the ability through action to regain control, one action at a time.
Choosing one thing that you can control
Success and predictability are two needed components of choosing the one thing that you can control. An important distinction is that starting with something that you can control does not include checking social media or scrolling through various news media outlets. Even though you are initiating the action, you cannot control the outcome of the content that you would consume.
At the core, the first action that you choose to control should allow you to independently foster a sense of success in accomplishing the task. It is important to note that the outcome of the one thing you can control should be able to be completed over and over with a sense of predictability. To start, think of something that you can control and then ask yourself these 2 questions.
1. Can I complete this task 100% on my own without input from another entity?
2. Can I be successful accomplishing this task?
The way forward
To begin, identify something that you can control, and then each day thereafter, add another action or task that you can control. Over a week, each day you would stack your success in completing tasks that you can control. By the 7th day, you will have seven things that you can control and accomplish each day that brings you a sense of success and predictability. As the weeks progress into months you would have built up an arsenal of actions that you can successfully achieve thus giving yourself a sense of competence and confidence.
Until that time, when we are no longer within the pandemic period, stacking the things that we can control will be the key element of promoting our growth and well-being during the pandemic period.
