Often when a crisis hits, on a personal or global level, we are paralyzed, stop doing things, watch, hope, and mostly do nothing – however, these crises are an opportunity to change, to do better, to do something different while others sit and watch – for me this state has happened a few times, like when I was sitting in a bus that hit a car and was the first to jump out to help and later people asked me how I could function as they watched the accident unfold in horror. Or when we were in lockdown realizing that all the gardeners would lose their whole yield because it was not part of the ‘essential’ goods that were still being sold and we helped them set up an online platform to sell over.
The right time to start your business or your idea won’t come, it’s more important to stop overthinking and just start doing things, finding better solutions to the problems. Especially when the world stands still and does not act, you can find many areas to act and move forward with new businesses. So, use the crisis as an opportunity to do more and think less.
With these tips, you can turn a crisis into an opportunity, see solutions instead of problems, and gain a different perspective:
- Realize you’re not the only one with problems and talk about them: When things are bad for us, we feel like ET – like a little alien in a strange world, alone and isolated. But we are not. We all fail, get older, get sick, die, or lose a job or a partner. It helps to talk to other people who are in similar situations. We know from research that it is important to talk about trauma during the recovery process. It helps you to process the trauma, make new friends, and create new perspectives and solutions that you might not have recognized otherwise.
- Recognize that it is in your power to overcome the crisis: We can’t change society, no. But we are masters of our own thinking, we can take responsibility for our thinking and control it. Don’t fall into tunnel vision – in a crisis, we lose our sense of balance and give more weight to the negative than to the positive. See the glass half full rather than half empty – it’s your choice how you think about it! Don’t spend too much time feeling sorry for yourself and powerless. What’s done is done. You can’t turn back the clock. Discover the power within yourself and embrace it. It is in your power to overcome the crisis because your willpower is in your power.
- Mental calming through physical activity: Heated arguments often lead to anger, tears, or even broken glasses. Vent your anger, but first go for a run or a walk outside – physical activity can calm the mind. Wait until your head is clear and use this clarity to tackle your crisis management actions.
- Acknowledge and embrace your emotions: “Women are emotional!” How often do you hear this stereotype? Your emotions are a part of the crisis. You need to know that emotionally driven “gut actions” are perfectly human and reasonable; they are part of your limbic system thinking, which Nobal Laurat D. Kahneman called “fast” thinking. Logical ‘slow’ thinking is located in the prefrontal cortex of your brain. So be prepared to recognize situations where a bit of calm and logic is needed to make a decision.
- Practice objectifying crises: Get some distance from the problem, for example by visualizing the crisis and making it smaller in your mind and leaving it behind. This will help you to look at the crisis more objectively.