Productivity Amidst Chaos and Confusion

I’ll be straight, I am specifically talking about productivity in the light of the political shift that occurred in the USA, yesterday.?

No matter which candidate you supported, I suspect you are feeling strongly about the results.? The range of emotions for and against the majority voters could be anywhere from depression to ecstasy!?

Every coffee room is buzzing!? Social media platforms are filled with a cacophony of opinions.?

How can you get work done today? I’ve been asking myself that question too.?

Let me explain my context and state:??

• I watched the election results until midnight.????

• I slept restlessly.????

• First thing I did when I woke up was check the election results and read that?Trump won the election.????

• Resignation and depression flooded my body.????

• Conversations with my business partner, family members, clients, colleagues, LinkedIn posts and personal connections were all about the election results.????

• Work conversations are heavily focused on analyzing the choice for President that the Americans made.????

I haven’t started the important tasks on my list.?

I’ve got to turn this day back into a productive use of my time.?

But how???

The sage response to any situation is to ask ?‘do I accept or convert?’ This simple question has saved me from extended periods of suffering.? Here’s how I answered that question for myself:??

Obviously, I can’t impact US politics, so I have to accept it.? But I can convert my state into something more productive.????

Here are the steps that I have learned to take forward.? Trust me, I will be holding myself accountable to these steps today, because I know they work.????

1. Pause (briefly) and acknowledge the situation and the associated feelings.?

1. Accept those feelings as they are, with grace.? No need to deny them or expect others to have the same.?

1. Investigate – ask yourself what else could these feelings mean or cause you to act???

1. Do something… small, simple, anything that feels like movement forward.??

I had a different theme planned for this week’s Sandbox article, but the events of Tuesday compelled me to put into practice the things that I hold to be true and worthy for my conversations, productivity and resilience.??

I hope that this is useful to you.? The 4 steps above apply to everyone, both sides of the political spectrum.????