Well, hello from my home office. My home office- that is now my temporary/permanent office- is where I’ve spent a majority of my time since we are currently under quarantine due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Other than this office and walks around my neighborhood, I have literally only gone to the grocery store in the last three weeks. (Man, I can’t wait to look back on this post one day and think, “Oh, that was so crazy- remember that!?!?!”)
At a time when we are isolating ourselves physically, I have been craving connection. I am just so curious what other people are thinking about this whole thing, how it has affected their lives and their work, and how they are handling it all. So I thought I would share five REALLY honest things that have crossed my mind during this crazy weird time in my life in the hopes that it would help both you and I connect right now.
I AM SO GRATEFUL FOR SOCIAL MEDIA RIGHT NOW: As much as people tout the dangers of social media (some of it warranted and some of it not), it’s surely been a huge lifeline for me right now. One major takeaway from this whole thing for me has been that wow, the world really needs digital communication. Instagram, TikTok, Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, podcasts, Zoom, Google Hangouts, etc. are INCREDIBLE tools we can all use to stay connected when we aren’t physically surrounding ourselves with our people right now. Surrounding yourselves with positive and joyful people right now through digital means is going to make a huge difference in how happily you experience this time in your life.
And those people don’t have to just be the people that you know in real life. They can be people who help inspire and motivate you on the Internet. I just recorded a video called Women Who Inspire Me: The 10 Internet BFFs You Need In Your Life Right Now that will give you tons of great ladies to follow on social media while you are distancing from your real life tribe right now.
THIS IS JUST WEIRD. I feel like I am living in a movie right now. It just feels so surreal. I mean, I KNOW what’s happening because I am seeing it play out in front of me, but it still doesn’t seem real that this will be my life for the next six weeks. That I literally will go NOWHERE except for the occasional trip out to get food/supplies. That I will literally be living and working at home full time. Everyone keeps using the word “unprecedented” to describe this situation, and while I am certainly annoyed by the overuse of the term, it does seem to perfectly paint the picture of what is happening. Our generation (and our parents’ generation) has not lived through anything like this. It is literally a historic event that our kids will eventually read about in history books.Living through history is new to us all and we are all just trying to figure out how to deal with it the best we can.
WHAT WOULD HAPPEN IF I LOST MY JOB? With 100 percent honesty, this has been my biggest fear. As an event planner, what I do for a living (gathering large groups of people together) is literally BANNED right now. I work for a small, family owned business who makes their money by selling event space to large groups of people and we are legally unable to do that for at least eight weeks, maybe more, depending on how long this lasts. While I know that my bosses are doing everything they can right now and exploring every resource available to them, I have to prepare myself for the possibility that if this drags on, I could lose part or all of my income. And,of course, thinking through that fear that is scary. I am sure many of us right now are walking through lost income (or the possibility thereof) as well. For me, it has made saving money into an emergency fund more important than anything else in my world right now. Every little bit of cash that gets moved into savings makes me feel better about the uncertainty.
I LOVE WORKING FROM HOME: My husband and I are both lucky enough to primarily work from home right now. We’ve found a good set up for us both to be working at home at the same time, him in the dining room/living room and me in my home office. I have to say, neither of us having a long commute has truly been a blessing. We each would spend between an hour and three driving to and from work and having that be eliminated makes the switch between “work mode” and “home mode” instantaneous and I love it.
In that regard, being together this much has honestly been great- I really, really love it. It’s been so nice to enjoy his company more. And I know that sounds cheesy and like I am just saying it to say it, but I genuinely mean it. I’m not saying there aren’t little annoyances; I am just saying that overall, I wouldn’t want to be quarantined with anyone else. And as someone who’s aspiring to work from home permanently, this experience has only solidified that desire for me.
THIS TIME IS AN OPPORTUNITY: I posted on Instagram last week a thought that crossed my mind while I was out walking one day. “This time is an opportunity to be more WHOLE people.” I’ve gotten the chance to regularly walk outside in the early evening and my husband actually has time at the end of his workday to get some outdoor projects done; something that he has always wished he had time for. All of those around-the-house projects that we all have had on our to do lists for years can finally get done and you can call your grandma and ask her how she is because YOU HAVE THE TIME. We have the time to be more well rounded people and have a whole life because so many of our normal distractions have been deleted. If you have a creative project to work on or something new to start, you now have the time to do it. Heck, even if all you had been hoping for was more time to rest, you have that time now! This time is an opportunity.
I AM VERY CLEAR ON WHAT IS IMPORTANT: I saw a quote recently that said, “When everything is going crazy, everything that is important becomes clear.” Doesn’t that just hit home for you right now? The second that this crazy news started to become really REAL to you, what were the first few things you thought of? Those things are the important things. Modern life is full of demands and expectations and distractions that make our lives a big blur of running from one thing to the next. Now that a lot of that blurriness has been removed, the simplicity of what life is now is actually kind of refreshing.
Of course, these things have always been important. But now, they’re standing out from the noise more than ever before. Living intentionally through this time means spending your time and energy on your most important things.
Stay home, stay safe, stay healthy and have a great day, Meghan
Hey, I’m Meghan
I love coffee, yoga pants, planners and color coordinating markers. Sound familiar? Yes! Let’s be internet BFFs. I am here sharing content on all things organization, productivity, goal getting and personal growth. Welcome!