Taking confidence from your lockdown experience

by Robert Poole

“Tough” is probably an understatement of what our lives have been like over the past year due to COVID. We have all faced difficulties at various times in our lives but this pandemic is one that we have all experienced in some form or other and can empathise with those around us. In some ways, COVID has possibly enabled us to feel closer to those around us, whilst at the same time causing hardships by limiting social interactions that can be important for wellbeing.

Many of us have had to change our lifestyles and habits, switching up from our regular daily routines, commutes and appointments. When a big change occurs, it usually causes a host of teething problems but one thing I have noticed is how much more self-assured a lot of people have become. By having to deal with it and seeing that we can make the most out of unpredictable circumstances, we have gained more trust in ourselves, more confidence.

Something about this whole virus period has really helped us to appreciate the little things in life and engage in some simple activities that we may tend to overlook when a tasty takeaway or the TV is beckoning. We have been forced to problem solve and find ways to entertain ourselves, looking for new hobbies or going back to ones we had since forgotten. The opportunity to call a loved one isn’t something that we take for granted now.

So if you are currently struggling with motivation, maybe you can take a look back and see what you have actually achieved during the lockdown, as even the smallest of successes is a big step! Just to help, I thought I would include 3 of the most common achievements below!

1 – Cooking:

Working in a supermarket during the peak of the crisis allowed me to hold many different conversations. Being surrounded by food in a supermarket and with baking and cooking being two of the hobbies that people had to resort to with restaurants and takeaways being closed, it was a common discussion topic with the customers. I am a big advocate of learning to cook, it’s definitely a skill that is undervalued and can provide so much joy to people around you even with the little gestures such as gifting a cupcake to someone or inviting someone over for a home cooked meal.

One of the most intriguing things to me was how many people took the time to learn how to cook good food. Armed with tools such as Youtube or dusty old recipe books, many customers were telling me about new recipes that they were trying to cook for themselves. Not only did they try, they succeeded and many of them felt more confident in the kitchen and would think twice about switching back to their old eating habits.

Now I’m not saying everyone should just cook from home and not eat out any more but cooking really is an underappreciated activity that can actually allow a person to unwind after a stressful day. You can really take pride in producing a meal, thinking ‘that’s all my own work.’ Thanks to modern technology we now have so many recipes at the tips of our fingers that we can easily search for things to do with our ‘leftover chicken’ or find a cuisine from the other side of the world and this situation has given us the time to finally expand our kitchen prowess!

Yes, you can replicate that Gordon Ramsay dish, or your favourite ‘fakeaway’! Who knows, maybe you even prefer cooking to going out now…

2 – Home Projects:

Now whilst some of the motivation to get things done around the house may have slowed as the series of lockdowns progressed (don’t worry, this is all a natural part of the process), it’s been great to see that as a society we have been challenging ourselves to take on small and large projects and learn new skills. The best part about learning a new skill is that you will always have that experience to draw back upon. The next time the house needs painting or the garden needs re-designing you will have some valuable skills to get the job done! It might take a bit of re-learning but you have done all of the initial hard learning.

To keep busy, we have been finding ways to maintain creativity, whether it be rearranging the garden, building greenhouses or even just setting a day aside to get some deep cleaning done at home. Completing these tasks in a normal environment is no easy task, so in a time where motivation is not easy to find we should be proud of our accomplishments, no matter how big or small! It’s always good to pick up some general DIY experience and so if you have been giving your furniture an uplift, or just redecorating your living space, make sure you take the time to give yourself a pat on the back and enjoy what you have accomplished!

3 – Slowing down:

Life has become rushed. How many times before lockdown would you have ever thought about taking the time to unwind and do nothing for a day? I am sure these times would be relatively few compared to the times you were stressing about projects for work, or staying late at the office. Then at the weekends you probably felt that you had to be doing housework or going out and being productive. I found I was always rushing, especially whenever I was in London. As a result I lost sight of what was important in my life, the people around me, the ability to communicate with friends, and the importance of my wellbeing and my mental state.

If you have been able to spend more time interacting with loved ones, or even neighbours (with at least 2 metres in between I hope) and have allowed yourself to take a day off, then this is a success as well! Too often we feel like we have to be going flat out all of the time. The modern mentality is that breaks are for the weak but sometimes it’s good to treat yourself, to call up your loved ones and ask how they are doing. Don’t underestimate the power of just taking the time to ask someone else how their day is going. Life doesn’t have to move at a million miles an hour.  When you are having fun you will be surprised by how fast time passes and then you’ll remember what it feels like to enjoy what you are doing and not trying to rush everything.

Overview

Even if the 3 things above aren’t necessarily things that you have engaged in more during this lockdown, find time to take the occasional ‘Time-out’. Put your feet up, reflect on all that you have achieved and try not to think about all the things you need to do tomorrow – after all, tomorrow is another day! Enjoy your health, enjoy what you have accomplished and most of all enjoy the little things that life has to offer.

I really do hope that we continue to take these values forward in our lives, that we remember what gets us through the tough times rather than falling back into our little bubbles of reality. Believe in yourself and recognise that you do deserve those accolades or that praise that comes your way instead of just moving straight onto the next task. Remember those funny video calls with colleagues, where people changed the backgrounds or had their family running frantically around in the back of the shot? We showed that we are all human, that we can all work together and that we should value ourselves, our achievements (no matter how large or small) and our time.