How can you take control of your mindset and lean into a situation that is outside of your control?
This week, Germany announced there would be a “Lockdown Light” for the entire month of November (and potentially longer). I got a lot of calls and messages on the day of the announcement – friends and clients feeling disappointed, lonely, scared and frustrated. They weren’t the only ones!! I felt the same way.
But rather than trying to talk them out of their very legitimate and understandable feelings, I encouraged them (and myself) to feel however they felt. To name, acknowledge, and feel their frustration and fear. Because it’s a lot easier to work with feelings you know you have, rather than trying to paper over them.
By working through my feelings, I also recognized how frustrated I was that I had to give up yet another important event this year: the Christmas market.
Everyone has a litany of events they’ve missed out on in 2020 and I’m no exception!! I haven’t seen my family in Canada for a year and a half. I’ve missed my parents’ 50th wedding anniversary and the birth of my nephew.
So missing out on the Christmas market – where I celebrate my December birthday!! – was not an option.
My mindset needed to shift.
I recognized I needed something to look forward to, that was independent of the situation we’re in. Something that encapsulates the mood & positivity of the festive season. Something that brings light into a grey, rainy, dark time of year.
And here it is!! We built a Christmas market in our backyard!!
We repurposed our kids’ old playhouse into a “Glühwein kiosk”. We decorated with lots of lights and candles. We bought a fire pit. And we can now celebrate the coming festive season outside, with appropriate distance, with a few friends. (One other household is the current mandate.)
I have something bringing (literal) light into my life for the next 2 months. I have something I can look forward to that is not in danger of cancellation. I shifted my mindset and feel so much lighter and more positive.
How are you feeling these days?? Would love to hear your thoughts!! ❤