Since the outbreak of coronavirus last year, it’s all been doom and gloom up to date. It’s very hard for most of us to stay optimistic given the rising number of confirmed cases and deaths across the world. We need to take this dangerous virus seriously because it has completely changed how we live and work. Some say that it will cripple the global economy. Today, it’s easy to focus on the negative side thanks to the local and international news being paraded in front of us all day and night.
While knowing the facts about this pandemic and keeping up to date with the latest information is crucial, you don’t need to be an expert on the virus and listen to every unpleasant detail after every hour. It’s extremely important to keep an optimistic attitude to survive this storm. This is especially true if you are a leader or manager. Your employees are looking up to you. They want to be assured that everything will be alright.
The last thing you want to happen is to appear weak or afraid. So, what can you do to keep an optimistic attitude during these trying times? Today, we are going to answer this question by sharing with you a few great tips that will boost your energy and resolve. Let’s get started!
7 tips to keep an optimistic attitude during the pandemic
Here are seven practical tips that will help you keep an optimistic attitude during the pandemic that has taken the world by storm.
1. Begin your day with positive expectations
Your morning determines how your entire day is going to be. When you wake up and start going through your news feed, chances are you are going to have a boring and sad day. Reading about other peoples’ cries and how much damage is expected in the coming days won’t help you in any way. The best thing you can do for yourself and your loved ones is being positive.
Being positive starts with how you think. What you think about greatly determines your expectations. Since most people think negatively, they tend to have negative expectations. And this doesn’t fail to manifest in their lives. To avoid attracting negative situations in your life, have positive expectations. No problem or challenge can’t be conquered.
Positive expectations are critical especially if you are a leader. As we said earlier, your employees are always looking up to you. Having positive expectations will keep your team intact and strong during trying times. At the end of the day, you’ll realize that the pandemic made you and your team stronger like never before.
One of the best ways to begin your day with positive expectations is saying to yourself, “Something great is about to happen to me.” You’ll be amazed by the number of great things that will happen to you and your team.
2. Everyone means well
It’s easy to fall into the trap of thinking that only a few people are on your side and the majority is against you. While you may have several facts to support this statement, remember that everyone around you is doing his or her best given the circumstances. Eliminate this thought from your life and see how the quality of your relationships will improve.
The people around you cannot irritate or anger you. It’s your judgment that irritates and angers you. It’s also important to note that people do a lot of things for different reasons.
To keep an optimistic attitude, you should avoid judging them until you know the reasons that drove them to do the things that anger or irritate you. As a leader, keep in mind that every team member is doing his or her best to boost the growth of the organization.
3. Be thankful
There are a lot of bad things happening across the world today. However, there are lots of great things too. Being thankful for what you have is essential if you want to be successful in the future. Gratitude draws you closer to the source of creation.
It is a harmonious way to interact with the source of creation. And the best part is, you’ll feel the effects immediately after the interaction. Keeping your mind focused on what you don’t have will not only affect your peace of mind but also how you interact with others. Be thankful for your family, friends, home, clothes, pets, food and technology that is enabling you to get something done at the end of the day.
You can also thank your team for sticking with you during such a difficult time. Send them “thank you” texts. You’ll be amazed at how this simple activity can change your life. Not only will you feel positive but also more things will be added to you.
4. Take care of yourself
It’s extremely difficult to care about others when you don’t care about yourself. You cannot share that which you don’t have. During difficult times, it’s important to take good care of yourself. This involves getting enough sleep, exercising, reading and improving your skills, becoming more resilient.
Research shows that an average adult should sleep for eight hours every night. When things get hard, it’s extremely difficult for most people to sleep. If you are among them, you should keep in mind that sleep is just as important as food or water. Failing to sleep has been reported to have adverse effects such as poor concentration, fatigue, irritability, and even death.
Regular exercise has been reported to improve physical and mental health. People who exercise regularly not only look better but also feel better. While it might be difficult to exercise given the circumstances in most nations right now, you can consider doing it at home. If you have a spacious backyard, you can jog around, stretch, skip rope and do some high-intensity training exercises. You should consult your instructor or doctor before exercising especially if you have underlying health problems.
Reading is just as important as exercising. As the popular saying goes, leaders are readers. Research shows that successful people read for at least thirty minutes every day. Others read as much as three hours every day. They read uplifting and instructional material that they can use in their daily lives. Reading is one of the best ways to develop and improve your skills. Some of the most important skills that every leader should develop and improve include time management, communication, effective listening, managing people and emotional intelligence to name a few.
If you find it hard to read, consider investing in audio programs. The good thing about audio programs is that you can listen to them while driving, exercising, mowing your lawn or cleaning your house.
5. Focus on solutions
During the pandemic, you’ll be faced with lots of problems. Being positive and optimistic does not mean that you should ignore the problems you’re currently facing. Acknowledging your problems is the first step to solving your problems.
As we said earlier, everyone around you is doing his or her best depending on the circumstances. Therefore, avoid blaming, criticizing and complaining when things don’t go your way. As a leader, you are responsible for everything that happens in your life and organization.
You are also responsible for how you respond to different situations in your life. Instead of focusing on the wrongdoings of others, focus on the solutions. You don’t get anything by complaining or blaming others. In fact, your team may start resenting you. And you may end up losing talent in the long run.
6. Avoid solving other peoples’ problems
Helping others in the best way you can is an important virtue. People who give tend to receive much more than what they gave in the first place. However, it’s important to draw boundaries. Let other people solve their problems whenever possible.
Do not allow other peoples’ problems to be your problems. Otherwise, you’ll end up paying for something that you don’t deserve. You’ve probably heard of the story of the ox and the donkey.
A farmer had an ox and a donkey. The farmer used the ox every day to plough the fields in the scorching sun. On the other hand, the donkey was used to transport the farmer on special occasions. Since the ox and the donkey used to sleep in the same shed, the farmer used to listen to their discussions.
One evening, the ox started complaining about how hard he works while the donkey eats and sleeps all day. The donkey listened and told the ox to pretend to be very sick so that he doesn’t go to work. In the morning, the ox pretended to be sick.
The farmer hitched the donkey to the plough and took him to the farm where he worked as he had never worked before. In the evening the donkey was led back to the shed. He was bitter and angry. Since that day, the ox and the donkey became enemies.
From this short story, you can see how solving other peoples’ problems can end up affecting you and destroying relationships. It is good to help people. But it’s important to draw boundaries to avoid getting hurt in the long run.
7. Make other people smile
Research shows that people think about themselves most of the time. This is not selfishness but natural. However, as a leader, you not only take responsibility for your life but also your team. It’s important to think about their happiness when making decisions, especially during difficult times.
By making other people without compromising our values and beliefs, we start to realize how important our attitude and expression is in other peoples’ lives. By making other people smile, you’ll end up feeling happy and optimistic.
Wrapping It Up
As a leader, it is your responsibility to keep your team intact during difficult times like these. It all starts with how you manage yourself. You cannot take care of your team if you don’t take good care of yourself.
It’s also important to develop and improve essential management skills to better manage your organization. By applying these tips, you’ll end up increasing the productivity and performance of your team while enhancing peace of mind.
Leon Collier
