Coronavirus Update
It seems a very long time ago that I wrote my pre-lockdown piece. I thought it might be a good time to have a chat about where we are at now, on business and personal levels.
Business is basically shut down. There’s not much we can do. Weddings are still being postponed on a regular basis, and I am now getting August and September couple’s looking at moving to 2021, such is the uncertainty. It must be stressful enough organising a wedding, without having to do it twice, and having to make decisions based on an unknown timescale. I feel for them all, and I’m doing my best to help as much as possible.
It’s very hard to see any events taking place in the next few months, which is obviously going to be really tough, as most of my work is based around events and gatherings of people. No income is very hard, and I will have to wait until June to get anything from the Government, but I will survive until then.
What I have done, is to try to turn this situation into a positive. The negatives are basically, not seeing anyone, family or friends. That, and the financial side. There are many positives however. I am usually an optimistic person and like to see positives, and along with a drive to constantly develop in life, this has seen me cope really well with the situation. I was a bit worried that my old adversaries, anxiety and depression would reappear in my life, fighting for my sanity, but that has not been the case at all. The anxiety and stress that I live with on a daily basis, is gone. Totally. I’m relaxed, not overthinking, and just enjoying the break from work. I have not had any time in over twenty years where I have been totally able to switch off. Even if you take a holiday, and I am sure all business owners know what I mean, you are never more than a couple of hours away from emails and messages relating to business. You are often wondering if you need to open your laptop and reply to an email, or risk losing a job. That is gone. I am going out on my bike now, without any anxiety in my mind that I need to do certain jobs. I had totally lost my ability to go out for long on my bike (or anything else to be honest) as my head would be constantly telling me what I should be doing instead. 2-3 years ago, I would jump on my bike and think nothing of riding 100+ miles and not feel any pressure to look at my phone. Those days had gone, and although I am obviously not doing that sort of days, I am happily switching off for 2-3 hours at a time.
I see lots of people online who are having ‘bad days’. Stressing about not feeling their best. I have had a few days like that, and my advice to you all is to accept it. Just allow yourself to have an off day. It’s normal. Don’t beat yourself up about what you could or should be doing. Just do something you enjoy, whether it’s going for a nice walk (and wow what about the April weather!), reading a book, watching a movie, having a nap on the sofa. Just do whatever you need to do to feel better or get through the day. Just don’t tell yourself you are lazy or useless. That is counter productive and will make you feel worse. Your body and mind are just telling you that you need a rest. Listen to them. I have become really good in recent years at knowing when I need to just write off a day, or a morning/afternoon/evening, and come back to it.
Another thing, and I have spoken to others about this, that has come out of the last few weeks, is seeing what matters and more importantly, who matters. Slowing life down has shown me that I was working too much. I am definitely addressing that going forward, and will be setting aside more ‘me time’ even if it is to go out and shoot stuff for myself. Getting creative for the sake of it. But mostly hanging out with people I love. Times like this you find out who cares, who is there for you, and vice versa. It’s very interesting, and I have had long and regular chats with people I have hardly spoken to before, building new and stronger friendships along the way. Equally there are people I considered friends, who have been so wrapped up in themselves and the latest conspiracy theory, that they forget you exist. That is also fine. I think it is important to see from a different viewpoint who the good ones are and focus your time on those. So, to my new friends, thank you for being part of this crazy journey with me!
So, positives. The weather has been amazing, I have got my fitness back, and I am not stressed. I have been working on the business behind the scenes, tweaking websites, developing a couple of new ideas, making YouTube videos, and just doing all the things I never had time to do before. I hope you are all doing your best to find positives amongst the madness. Please comment below and let me know what you are doing to stay positive, and how your experience has been.
I will leave you with a photo from a couple of days ago. I was told I am always too serious in my photos, and need to show more of my fun side. It makes sense, because I generally am a positive guy who likes to have laugh every day. I am going to have another go at some business portraits later, but here’s the favourite so far.
Take care, stay safe, stay home and be positive!
