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On the picture that’s posted with this blog, you see a beautiful bunch of flowers. They were given to me one evening – at the end of the training year – around the fire that I enjoyed together with my second and third year students last month. It was a strange feeling to walk across the airport with a bunch of flowers. It must have been quite a strange sight when I had to take the bunch of flowers through customs, where they had to be scanned as well. Still, I am very happy that I did it. In this blog I explain why.

Heartwarming

Over the past year I’ve had to do a lot online with my students. That hurt; the lack of being together affects all of us. That is – hopefully – something we will never fully get used to. For each of us, you, those who are reading this blog, my students and for me, the Covid-19 virus still has a huge impact. I often hear that from my students. It is quite something. Constantly being careful, quarantining when you have travelled, the underlying fear of getting sick or infecting another person… Missing physical contact on a level we were used to… Not being allowed to give a hand or a hug. That hurts.

Feel the downs, but don’t drown

There are also great moments, new initiatives coming into being, precisely because of Corona. There are ups and downs. We do not need to avoid these downs. We can feel the pain. By acknowledging for ourselves that we are suffering a loss – for example, by not being able to cuddle or speak IRL to a loved one – we will ultimately be able to deal with the situation better. The trick is to embrace those downs, but not drown in them*. While feeling the downs and being aware of them, you may also test your resilience and find new resources.

* A good exercise in feeling your pain and how to deal with it can be found in my blog: The feeling of being overwhelmed | It’s all too much.

New resources?

What are you talking about this time, Linda? Well, I told you earlier about that bunch of flowers that came with me. There’s a story behind that.

The evening I experienced with my second- and third-year students was heartwarming. Despite the pain of having to do so much online with this group, we still had the opportunity to experience this evening. It was one of those evenings that I know I will always carry with me. It gave so much energy and strength to see each other around the fire! For the third-year students this evening was a farewell, for the second-year students it was the end of a course year. We talked about how everyone was doing and how you give direction to your life. I enjoyed every minute. The next day, when it was time to pack my bags for my trip to Norway, I really struggled to tear myself away from the Yurt and the warm memories there. I didn’t want to leave. Now that I am in Norway, I really miss the connection.

I got the flowers that evening. I took them with me because they are a (re)source for me, a link to what I leave behind. The flowers then represent the source of what we have together and what we have built up. How symbolic is it that those flowers travelled all the way with me, through the airport, customs, to Norway, where I am in quarantine for another 10 days at the time of writing this blog?

Personal leadership

It is an example of personal leadership to be able to see that bunch of flowers as a resource. In this day and age, when we have to deal with Covid-19, it is important to deal with resources, strengths and tools in a new way. In spite of the problems, there are always positive experiences to which we can relate. If you can turn those experiences into a source from which you can draw strength or inspiration when things are not going so well, then you are engaged in personal leadership. Would you like to learn more about this? Then the Leadership programme is for you. For more information please feel free to contact me for a free Strategy Talk.