Practising Positivity in a Pandemic

As many nations continue their new normal routines following government restriction guidelines, which affect both our social and work life.

Many of us have noted that we have more time on our hands which can either be used proactively or can lead to boredom and over thinking or worrying.

You are not alone if it is proving tough to stay positive and present in your daily activities with everything moving slower than usual. We recognise that this is a tough and testing time for all, even more so if on top of that you suffer with anxiety or worry dominating your thoughts.

1 People wish to share some simple life hacks to incorporate into your daily routine and research from the experts that aims to boost your mood and shift negative mindsets.

Firstly, a renowned tip shared by many therapists is allowing yourself a “Daily worry period”, this is where the strategy of postponing worry helps you to not dedicate your whole day to one worry or negative thought. Firstly, choose a set time to worry this should be the same every day, not performed too near to when you go to sleep and is recommended to last up to 20 minutes max (E.G 5.00-5.20). During this time you are allowed to worry about everything that is on your mind but after your 20 minutes is up you have entered your ‘worry free zone’. If anxious thoughts persist to rise past your dedicated 20 minutes, jot them down either on paper or in a note on your phone, articulating your thoughts to sentences is much harder work then just thinking them so will lead to your worries losing their power. Then continue with your day reminding yourself that you can think about this worry the following day in your time slot if needed.

Another top tip from leading therapists and psychologists, is to quite literally talk to yourself, ask your subconscious questions and it is likely you will notice a positive increase in your attitude. Next time you find yourself thinking, 'what if', ask yourself, 'Can I do anything about this? Do I have any control over the situation?' If the answer is 'no', let the worry go. Stop winding yourself up over something you can't do anything about. If the answer is 'yes', make an action plan: what are you going to do, when are you going to do it? Then schedule it in and DO IT. Your worry will get drastically reduced once you take action.

Many people have reported that they have been struggling to concentrate working from home, this can be due to a decrease in team motivation and productivity yet an increase in distractions such as being caught up in the midst of worrying. Both employees at 1 People and multiple industry professionals have reported that playing background music or an audiobook during the work day helped increase their focus alongside following a schedule and leaving the house at least once to take a break and get air. Try out some of these suggestions to help you stay focused and battle the temptation to get lost in over thinking.

Lastly, If you are in need of a reminder that the things you worry about are not facts...Dr Robert L. Leahy found that 85% of worries have a neutral or positive outcome. 85%! That's absolutely huge! That means that 17 out of every 20 worries turn out just fine.

Much Love,
1 People