HOW COVID-19 CAN HELP YOU ACHIEVE MORE

In times of confusion and chaos you gain the most clarity.

We are in a time of chaos, confusion and a global crisis. We have all been affected by this Coronavirus and we are facing an uncertain time. We have seen in Europe that people have been told to stay home and will and could be losing their income from their jobs and we may all find it difficult in the coming months to feed our families and may come out of this worse for wear financially. In the US, this seems to be where we are going at the moment.

Unfortunately the system that has been built globally, isn’t designed for situations like this. But looking throughout human history you will see that there are many instances in every generation of a global crisis. Most recently we can look to 2008 and the global recession, prior to that in the last century we had 2 world wars and the Great Depression among other world crises not to mention national ones.

There are others huge occurrences that we have survived and told the tale. Yes there are causalities, and there will be more as the weeks and months pass and we will mourn our loved ones and feel sad that those that leave us and fell victim to the virus didn’t make it with us.

But for those that haven’t contracted you can use this time wisely. There are notable men and women in the past that took the time to build when confronted by global chaos. They were able to execute a vision in the midst of confusion and chaos. They were able to use destruction for construction. They saw clearly how they could use their time and resources to enable them to bring something valuable into the world for themselves and for others.

How can athletes still improve and reach their goals while there are no games, camps and most of the world are self-isolating and social distancing?

Well look at aspects of where you need to improve and focus on those. If you have space, take a ball and keep getting those touches in. Improve your weaker foot. Improve your strength and conditioning. Work on all those aspects you always wanted to but you couldn’t because you had the excuse that you were too tired after training or games. Do those aspects you need to work on that you made an excuse you couldn’t do because you had too much homework or you wanted to socialize with friends.

To reach the top it will take many hours of practice and repetition. Get as many touches of a ball in a safe environment at home (please don’t break any windows) Work on using the time to strengthen areas of the body by working out at home with a purpose. Of course, these times are not ideal. But your goal hasn’t changed. The methods to get there may have to be altered but the goal remains the same. If you haven’t contracted the virus right now at some point this will blow over and then you will be revisiting your dreams and goals.

What have you done in the meantime (still) that will enable you to achieve them?

For everybody this is like a reset button. A time to reflect and look inwards rather than what someone else can do for you. This is a time that you can create habits that can enhance your careers and lives. This is a time for inner soul searching and finding out more about yourselves and what you truly want. A time where you can’t really look enviously at what other people are doing on Instagram because we will all be in the same boat – at home. We can only master this wave by living purposefully.

Yes, we should all take every precaution possible to make sure we are doing our bit so that this virus doesn’t spread. But also we should all be doing our bit so that when we come out of it, we won’t look at this time as a waste of our time but actually a moment that enabled us to go to that next level.

Use this time as an opportunity. There are always opportunities in times of chaos. Whatever stage you are in life, there is an opportunity right now to enhance what it is you have been doing or want to be doing.

Chaos in your outer circumstances does not need to equate to your inner world. In fact, it often leads you to having the most clarity.