Global Leadership
June 8, 2020
Many people far wiser than me have said that “control is an illusion”. I think the COVID-19 pandemic is certainly highlighting this. We have very little control of anything….what we do have though are choices on how we perceive and respond to the situation. In other words, we can’t control what happens to us, but we can control our reaction to it. This skill is called reframing. It’s defined as ‘changing the way something is expressed or considered’.
I’m not saying that we want to ignore, be in a disillusioned state or being a ‘Pollyanna’ about current events, but rather focusing more on how we change the narrative. I appreciate that sometimes, it’s useful, necessary and even fun to wallow in self-commiseration but that seldom serves us in the long run. Reframing helps us maintain our own sense of well-being and mental health.
It is important to realize that many people are going through a sense of grief and loss with what is currently happening in the world. We are charting unexplored and new terrain. As leaders, we are making it up as we go. How can you reframe that into something that is helpful for you?
