Strengthening Hope During This Time of The New Abnormal

This is a new time for all of us. It is a time where most of what has made us feel safe and secure has now been rearranged without our permission. This has left so many feeling lost, confused, and struggling with the unknown. For many, this has unleashed a host of emotions that are pulling them in a multitude of directions.

Ralph told me during a phone call, “I have never felt so out of sync. I get up in the morning, find myself starting to do my normal routine and remember, Whoops!”

Ralph is like so many who have found the routine of their life changed without their permission.

I just got off another phone call where Linda said, “I talk to my friends, and they are so lost. The routine they have lived each day is now not there. They just can’t seem to adjust to what is happening. They are lost without their normal routine.”

This new abnormal (not normal) is having a very strong effect on people. Their life is out of sorts, out of sync, and out of their control. It is hard for them to stay focused on anything; they find themselves wandering around just trying to figure out what to do, where to go, and how to handle all this.

The need is for people to understand that there are going to be times and things in life you can’t control. There are going to be events that are going to come to your life that are unpredictable. The challenge is for them to slow down, realize “what is,” and make the adjustments.

This new abnormal is presenting us with time to really focus on the design of our life, see what has kept us from really living, take this time to look at our life, and focus on what is really important to us. This means time to make adjustments, but most have been so trapped in their routine, they don’t know how to adjust! They are left with a lost feeling.

In my conversations I am having with people, either through emails or phone calls, I am hearing the emotional toll this is having on people. A life cannot be turned upside-down without going through their own emotional crisis. For so many, this “new Abnormal” is creating so many emotional reactions. Most of these emotions can be tied to their FEAR OF THE UNKNOWN. Rather than slowing down, really listening and responding with a sense of calmness, they are speeding up, listening to too much media, and feeding their fear. Here is one of the most damaging aspects of negative fear – it steals your hope!

Hope is important because it is a critical part of your personal motivation. Take away hope, and it is replaced with doubt! Doubt is one of the top three enemies the human life deals with. Hope is that inner strength that believes in, trusts in, and has the faith in your ability to handle whatever is thrown at you.

Think about that! What happens when one loses their sense of hope?

What happens when Hope is lost?
• havoc sets in
• our fears increase
• positive diminishes
• emotions take over our decisions

Can you see where that can erode the human spirit? When hope diminishes, one loses the ability to see the good.

Where does Hope come from?
• having a strong spiritual core
• opportunities that bring improvement
• people whose presence remains positive
• experiences with a positive pathway for us to follow

Hope is critical to strengthening yourself in the midst of an attack from the unknown.

Here are 7 Steps for you to use to Strengthen Your Hope at this time:

1. Calm spirit must control your decision-making process
2. Order to your life must become a focal point
3. Negative must not become what you dwell on
4. Tackle this time of uncertainty as a “moment,” not a “forever”
5. Refuse to react
6. Overcome your fear of the darkness, the unknown
7. Listen!

Truth: We will get to the other side of this. The question is, “what will we let it do to us while we are getting through this new abnormal? Stay strong; keep your focus looking forward, and don’t let what you can’t control steal your HOPE!