It’s a variation of the age-old glass half-full or half-empty question. Do you lean towards pessimism or optimism? We’re usually not fully one or the other, but often we lean in one direction. I think the ideal is being a bit of a realist...hoping or believing that things will go well but realistic that things will not always be sunshine and rainbows.

There are changes that happen almost overnight - an accident, working or school models because of a pandemic, a decision to transform your life.  However, the real underlying change...the behaviors that support the decisions...that takes time.

Google's definition of hindsight is an "understanding of a situation or event only after it has happened or developed." When we look back on our experiences, we have perfect vision...we see the choices we made, the choices we wish we had made, the outcomes that we experienced. When we have this clarity, we shouldn't waste it on "should have dones" or celebrations for making the right choices but more on how to use the outcomes to help us in the go-forward.

I'm usually not quite so bold in my subject lines or my statements, but I think it's important in this case to get my point across. I know work has traditionally been defined as the activities that you do that earn a paycheck so that you can support yourself, your family, and ideally have some extra left over to save and take a vacation. But it's time for us to pause and really think about this.

We experience a "new" or "next" normal whenever we move homes, switch schools or jobs, get married, have a child or the next child, or start a new activity. All of those things change how we experience our life - what our schedules are like, who we interact with, when or how we commute, etc. The key difference now is that the whole world is experiencing this change with us at the same time. So...what have we learned from those past experiences that we can use now?

What are you most looking forward to when restrictions start to lift?

I'm ready for a change of scenery and for more in-person connection. I've been using some of this time trying to figure out what I want my life to look like when I have the freedom of choice back on where I go and who I'm with. Through that reflection, I've also been thinking about what I miss most/what makes me sad and what have been the positives of this extra time at home. It's been an interesting exercise for me because I learned some things I may not have if this crisis hadn't occurred because some things have not been major shifts for us.

My ask for all of us: For every action or communication we're making during this crisis (and ideally afterwards), pause and reflect..."How do I inject the right amount of "heart" into this," particularly if it's something that will impact individuals negatively.

Sometimes I assume that I'm the only one feeling a certain way.  This belief often results in more introverted behaviors or frustration or sadness or loneliness.  More often than not, the reality is that others are also feeling this same way, I just don't know it because I may not be brave enough to share my feelings out loud.  

We know that feedback done well is supposed to help us be better versions of ourselves, and we should always be striving to be that best version of ourselves. The key to remember is that this best version is not a destination...this is a journey we're taking, hopefully for the rest of our lives.

Today is Valentine's Day, and many are either celebrating with cards, gifts and candy for a loved one or friends or, in some cases, feeling sad because there isn't a loved one to celebrate with.  This week, I focused my posts on preventive care - taking care of ourselves, our teams, and our organizations and on what to do when you do find that you're "getting sick" despite the preventive care.  Today's blog is going to continue to build on that theme because I believe it's critical that we focus on love in our lives for optimal health and well-being.