Stepping out into the light of a brand-new day…

As I write this – on Friday 24th July 2020 – I am reflecting on what has been a fantastic couple of weeks.

Genuinely I feel back to my best – in the words of Austin Powers – I’ve got my ‘Mojo’ back!

In the spirit of vulnerability, authenticity & ‘brutal’ honesty that I always try to deliver – it followed a period of a few weeks of feeling pretty **** & my old challenges raising its head.

Up until that point, I’d found lockdown pretty easy to navigate, as a natural introvert – the isolation element wasn’t particularly challenging aside from not being able to see my family & friends in ‘real life’.

The great thing about going through Mental Health challenges – is that you become very self-aware. 

You also are very quick to make the right calls to safeguard yourself.

So – I stopped. I took a week off of everything. It took me until Friday of that week to actually relax (it’s amazing how much stress we can carry!) – I came back & made some changes; 

• I restructured my week to incorporate loads more self-care.
• I reviewed all of my activities & culled the things that served me no purpose.
• I decided to reposition Forging People – more to follow on that next month!
• Ensured that home time & family time were prioritised & ring-fenced.
• Levelled up my self-care routine & set fresh goals.

 After I did those things - & also set out on bigger objectives to develop & evolve – it was like a tap was turned back on!

• Greater clarity.
• Increased focus.
• Loads happier!
• A new sense of ‘normal’.
• Boundless energy!

 It feels so good to have that feel good factor back again, to be in full ‘flow’ – business is booming once more – but most importantly, I am benefitting from ‘forging my new reality’ as I shared with you recently – by absolutely prioritising self-care.

 The perfect example of this happened this Wednesday - after an early Speaking engagement - my wife & I (& our dog Tula!) took a trip down to North Devon to walk part of the coast path.

A beautiful day in every way - especially as it’s the first time we’ve been anywhere other than home since lockdown started in March!

Once we got past the initial anxiety of ‘the new normal’ & finding our way along the social distancing guidelines - we had a day full of fun, recovery & recharging!

It’s so easy to underestimate how powerful & inspirational it is to have a change of scenery, to step out together after months of lockdown & start to get used to the brave new world.

It’s something that I’ve been feeling anxious about due to the conditioning nature of #COVID19 but after Wednesday I’m excited to do more - safely of course - & soon to see my family & friends again.

Realistically & honestly – this would not have been possible without spending the lockdown months shaping myself personally & professionally – designing & developing a ‘life on my terms’ - but also taking that big step back to recover, recharge & review.

There always will be challenges, struggles & negative happenings – as I say when I Speak; “We cannot control the uncontrollable, the pursuit of doing so will only create anxiety.” It’s not about stopping those events happening to us, it’s about taking the learning from them – to go again stronger, happier & smarter the next day.

The trip may also not have been possible in the working week with the previous time & energy demands of constantly travelling - so in a lot of ways I am now considering the virtual way of doing business as ‘Version 2’ of Nick Elston & Forging People – or ‘The New Norm’.

 Who knows?

But here is the great thing…we don’t need to know! (Phew!)

The first thing we sacrifice when we struggle with Mental Health, with low self-esteem, low self-confidence or any life challenges - is choice - but that's the only thing we do have - to proactively choose how we go in to each & every day - even when we don't know what the bigger picture looks like.

 So, wrapping up - the one thing I will leave you with is this – many times in life, in business – we need to take a step back to take a step forward.

 Until next time…

 Cheers

 Nick ??

 Inspirational Speaker on the Lived Experience of Mental Health – www.nickelston.com

Founder of Forging People – a new breed of Speaking Coaching! – www.forgingpeople.com

PS For a weekly dose of insight & inspiration please do subscribe to my YouTube Channel - it’s home mine & Forging People’s videos - including my #2minutetopics series (BIG subjects tackled in BITE size chunks!) & the new Forge Ahead Show (Podcast & Video series)!