What seemed like the start of peaks for our small business, everything came to a complete stop. I mean, zero page views. Zero orders. Zero engagement with posts. Zero movements. It was scary, shocking and very overwhelming.

What were we going to do as a small business? How would we continue to operate during these times? Was this going to be the end for our once side hustle turned full time? How would we pay bills that depended on some of this income? How were we going to finish our remodel in our home? What happens when the market goes down for a month, 6 months or even a year? What will the marketplace look like and will we still be standing when it is all over?

These were the questions that stopped us in our tracks. For 2 weeks I paced around the house aimlessly while I was supposed to be working. 2 weeks I was in a daze, unsure of what to say and what not to say. Not practicing my daily movement, meditation, eating well or sleeping made this blurred state even worse. Can you relate?

It wasn’t until I realized things will never go back to normal. In fact, things were going to be different and this might be the new normal for 3+ months. What would I do to get myself back on track for this new normal?

Well, first off I needed a good kick in the butt to realize what is really, truly at cost here if I keep stumbling over myself with the business, personal growth and within relationships. I couldn’t continue to push everything off and act like it was going to be okay. I really want this business to still be standing at the end of the day so when I took 30 minutes and I wrote down everything that would happen if I kept lolly-gagging around and got a good look at what I was up against.

While that was helpful, it didn’t help with this paralysis I was feeling. Why was I no longer creative? Why did I only want to clean my house and by clean I mean, get out the toothbrush and conquer into every detail of forgotten corners? So, I decided to give into my cleaning obsession. It felt good to do things with my hands, left me feeling accomplished yet still not wanting to be creative.

After I cleaned and organized what felt like my entire house and garage and yard, I decided I need to listen to a few podcasts and do some personal development reading to get back in the new groove. The first suggestion I got was to spend 30 minutes and dive into every single fear I had about what was going on. I relentlessly decided to sit down and give it a whirl. Sure enough, 10 minutes in I was balling my eyes out and it felt SO GOOD. To get everything off my chest, onto paper and out of my over-cluttered head.

It wasn’t until I was really able to let go of the fear, anxiety, worry and overall stress of the situation that I would start my creative side up and running. Do you feel any of these emotions? Are you letting them out? Are they consuming your every move? Maybe it is time to set them free.

So, what are our goals this next quarter?

Simple to SHOW UP.

Continue to create helpful content that is REAL and really helpful.

Continue to take time to release emotions.

Continue to eat well. Move well. Rest well.

Continue to clean.

Continue to create.

And most importantly, continue to be present through it all.

Let me know how you’re handling it all and anything that is helping you in the comments!

That’s all for now friends

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Sydney