Productivity and first times

March has not gone as planned. The Covid 19 virus made sure of that. And as such productivity and first times for a lot of things have been top of mind for most people.

This episode should be dedicated to favorites – and while I am very fond of both of the things I feature – I feel like it is a stretch to call these favorites given the context in which I’m sharing them.

Productivity Shame

Productivity shame occurs when we set unrealistic intentions for ourselves and then are not able to achieve those goals. We start beating ourselves up, feeling as though we’ve failed or let someone down.

Does this sound familiar? I have felt this the last couple of weeks and I know others have as well. We need to practice tender discipline – give ourselves some grace – during this time of uncertainty. It is natural to feel stress and a desire to be doing more (and more… and more) but it cannot be at the sacrifice of our health and sanity.

Check out episode 20 and the show notes for more about this idea. And if you want to hear it all from the source I initially learned about it, be sure to listen to Dan Harris’ interview with Jocelyn Glei on his podcast, 10% Happier.

First Times

Let’s face it – we are all dealing with a pandemic for the first time. As a society,

we have not social distanced before
we have not “sheltered in place”
we have not seen demands on our healthcare system in ways we are witnessing now
we have not seen a shortage of toilet paper and wipes either

We are all dealing with what Brene Brown refers to as a FFT – f’ing first time. If you have read her books, you are aware of this concept.

When we encounter something for the first time, and we start feeling anxious or stressed over it – and we start exhibiting those feelings broadly – she defines that as a FFT. The steps to overcome that are:

Normalize it – recognizing that you are not alone in this. Someone, somewhere, at some time has also experienced what you are for the first time too.
Perspective – recognize the perspective you are seeing it through and articulate it (to yourself or others if necessary). And look at it through the perspective others are seeing the experience as well.
Realistic expectations – form your own realistic expectations of how you are going to move forward. And articulate those to the team around you as necessary.

These are my words on how to move through a FFT and how it helps me to ground myself at the moment. We are all in a first-time situation right now and will experience many more in the coming weeks and months. This strategy is going to get a workout in my life.

I encourage you to learn more about this by listening to Brene Brown’s new podcast – Unlocking Us, specifically her first episode which is dedicated to f’ing first times. She gives three personal examples of how she is currently moving through the FFT process.

Marketing in Minutes

So many of my clients and colleagues are struggling to know what they should be doing in terms of marketing right now. In an effort to help ease those concerns, I’ve put together a series of marketing tips focused on keeping you consistent, maintain clarity, and feeling confident about your marketing and branding during this uncertain time.

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