2020 has been a doozie so far in umpteen ways.
And that’s an understatement.
People have lost their jobs.
People have been dealing with illness and even the deaths of loved ones due to Covid-19.
People are under pressure due to the uncertainty of the future.
Homeschooling.
#BlackLivesMatter
Politics.
And on and on and on…
I have been dealing with my own brand of stress over the last few weeks, which caused me to miss sending out newsletters and composing new blogs. I simply crumbled.
I work for US Mortgage and we have been fortunate in our industry to be able to continue to work from home through all of the pandemic. And, strangely enough, the volume of loans coming through everyone’s pipeline, including mine, has been record-breaking. Ask me how with the state of the economy being what it is as a result of the Coronavirus and I would not have a good answer. All I know is I have been slammed.
People are stressed out.
They are impatient and worried.
And, the amount of volume happening in the real estate world along with new guidelines and restrictions put into place due to Covid-19 have slowed every single closing down.
Frustration is high.
And, I have not been handling it well.
I am professional and do my best to take an empathetic stance with all my clients. At night, I don’t sleep well. When I do sleep, I have strange and terrifying nightmares. I even had what I think was a panic attack or two last week. No bueno.
I started feeling a bit like I was watching a bad movie of myself falling apart. So, I took action.
- I made an appointment with my therapist.
- I had a candid conversation with my branch manager for suggestions on how to better handle the stress.
- I had a conversation with my husband about what he thought I should do.
- I got OFF Facebook for a few weeks.
- I started consuming more positive personal development books and audio.
- I took naps.
- I decided I would take all the time I needed before I tried to take on the world again.
- And, I kept consistent with my fitness and nutrition.
I told my fitness and nutrition Coach, Dr. Rick Kattouf, that my consistency in workouts and nutrition was the one thing keeping me sane. And, it’s true. Those 2 hours in the gym each morning (yep, I’m up to about 2 hours a day, 6 days a week), have been the one thing I can count on in this very uncertain world we are living in today.
Fitness. Nutrition. Mindset. I call these the Trifecta of Success.
- Moving your body every day is an important way to decompress, reduce stress, and stay healthy. The physical benefits are just as positive as the mental and emotional benefits.
- Eating healthy, balanced meals and keeping sugar (including alcohol) in check are good ways to keep your body in tip-top shape, regardless of your fitness level. What you fuel your body with matters.
- Protecting your mindset is essential. If you notice yourself sliding into the proverbial Pit of Despair, take action. Call someone or talk to someone and be honest. Schedule time with a professional therapist (it does wonders). Consider spending time reading a good book or at least watching an inspirational and uplifting movie instead of scrolling through the cesspool of social media.
I am super excited about some mindset training I have committed to as of today. I’ll be working with Mental Management Systems on perfecting my mental game. I just re-read “With Winning In Mind” by Larry Bassham and was inspired once again by this man and his Team. I reached out to them and found that one of their Coaches specializes in sports and competitions that involve judges. Boom! I knew this was my opportunity to implement the Mental Management System into my training program for my 2021 Bikini Competition. After 9 months of prep, I don’t want to crumble under pressure on the day of the comp. Sure, I have been on stage 1000 times. Just never like this. My mindset is going to be super sharp thanks to this addition to my own Team of Coaches. I’ll keep ya posted. In the meantime, grab the book, With Winning In Mind. You can read it in one day.