If you’re on this mailing list a while you’re probably aware that in my mid-20s (now scarily over 20 years ago!) I went through a very challenging personal period – a time that was extremely difficult mentally.

And part of my journey out of that terrain, was to get some help through counselling. I was lucky that I was connected to someone who was perfect for me. And he helped me to gradually turn things around and in the process learn many priceless lessons – that still stand to me today and are as relevant in my business life as much as my personal one.

Something I discovered 20 years ago that has served me well in achieving goals, enhancing focus and reducing stress/axiety was the power of relaxation – done in a certain way to activate your intuition and unconscious mind.   I’ve used this approach with private clients for many years and recently have been doing a lot more of…

The very first ‘Inspire Me’ weekly email was in October 2008 – when the financial world had collapsed.

During that time, and over the following years I worked with many leaders as they navigated through turbulent waters – and we learned many things together.

But one of the most important take-aways from that time is the value of pain and disruption. There is always something to be gained in such a time, because when we are disrupted, the edge of possibilities available to us opens up.

I’m sure like me you’re hearing about and experiencing interesting moments during this ‘Corona Period’.

One I thought I’d share with you was from the weekend.

I found myself on a call last Friday with several hundred people from around the world as we participated in a global check-in for leaders and transformation professionals.

One of the questions discussed was this: What are you being called to let go of?

Here were the most common answers: Busyness / Existing mental patterns / The way ‘I’ want it to be / My ego and the way it ‘should’ be / My need to control everything

I had so many conversations with leaders going through turmoil last week but two stick out.

They were with 2 leaders in reasonably similar situations. Yet one of them had gone into total doomsday mode and as a result ‘paralysis by analysis’. The other was experiencing some stress but was focused on getting to the reality of the situation and then adapting quickly to the new reality.

Most people reading this will find themselves in a new situation – where they will be working from home more than normal.

Something I learned years ago while going through a severe personal crisis, was I had to be very careful about the kind of information I consumed.

And I remember in the crash of 2008/09 that one of the biggest problems for my clients was the amount of negative information being consumed daily – which when they reduced helped their clarity considerably because it reduced the scale of the fear that had taken hold.

I’ve spent a lot of the last 3-4 days speaking with leaders as they try to adapt to what’s happening in the world right now.

There has been a blend of under-reaction, over-reaction and insightful action.

I found myself telling a story to a few about James Stockdale (who I will return to in a future post) who is a famous US military officer. Famous for the recognition of his resilience while being captured as a Prisoner of War during the Vietnam War, and in the most extreme and inhumane conditions.

Below is some advice I’ve sent out to clients and people in my community. It may help and give you an angle you hadn’t yet considered as this unprecedented situation continues to unfold.   The reality now is that we seem to be moving rapidly into a different phase of this corona virus crisis. One that needs…

It has been amazing to watch the mental impact on many people over the last few weeks as the Coronavirus has moved around the world.

The uncertainty and volatility brought into the financial markets is just one example of the consequences to this phenomenon. People in Australia fighting over toilet rolls in a supermarket is another!

When things become more uncertain, most become more fearful.

And what we will see now in the coming weeks and months, is that fear creates other problems.