Why Being Adaptable Can Be Hard
With all of the disruption that has happened over the past few months, many people are finding it hard to stay on top of things – let alone adapt. Yet now, more than ever, we all need to adapt.
Many of us are juggling multiple roles, often in the one place: our home. Before COVID-19, home was a sanctuary for many of us, but it’s now been invaded by work, home schooling, etc. And while some of us have found a way to deal with all of that and are now facing a return to the workplace, the threat of COVID-19 is still there.
It’s no wonder that many of us are struggling to adapt!
Our bodies and brains are designed to resist change. Our brain is an energy hungry beast that uses more energy when adapting to change as it develops new neural pathways and connections. Adapting requires us to focus more. Yet many people are struggling to focus at present.
Are you getting in enough self-care? We are much like a sports car and self-care is the high-octane fuel that keeps us running smoothly. Are you exercising enough, getting enough sleep, eating well, staying hydrated, taking regular breaks, connecting with others and just having fun? All of these help fuel your energy and make it easier to adapt. Or is your current reality a little (or lot) of social media, news, working through lunch and rarely taking breaks?
How is your sleep? Sleep helps set us up for the day. It is where our brain does a lot of its heavy lifting, connecting what we learned that day with other ideas. It is also where the brain cleans out the toxins. If you are waking up tired and foggy brained, your brain isn’t getting the sleep it needs – and that makes it harder for us to adapt.
Do you wish things would go back to what they were, resisting what is? When we resist what is, we focus our precious mental energy on things we can’t control. The only things we can control are ourselves and our thoughts. Don’t waste your brain’s energy wishing things would go back to where they were; accept that what is and move forward with things you can control.
As a famous person once said, ‘Resistance is futile’.
There are many reasons why being adaptable can be hard, but does this mean that we should just give up? No, absolutely not.
Being aware of why you might be finding it hard to adapt is the first step towards becoming more adaptable. If you reflect that you are not doing enough self-care, then you can choose to change that. If you realise that you are stuck in your thinking, you can choose to change that. Awareness of what is making adaptability hard for you is the first step towards changing that. Once you are aware, you can choose to change your current approach to one that helps you find adapting easier.
We would love to hear from you about what makes it hard for you to be adaptable.
We will talk in our next blog about strategies to help you adapt.
Until next time, stay magical.