7 Mind Hacks to Manage the Side Effects of Quarantine
I am writing this in the seventh week of the Corona quarantine. The ‘stay at home’ orders have been extended until the end of May in California. Life is disrupted. The way we work has changed completely, and the workloads at home have hit a new high with not-so-clear rules of delegation for apparent reasons.
I am writing this in week 7 of the quarantine. The ‘stay at home’ orders have been extended until the end of May in California. Life is disrupted. The way we work has changed completely, and the workloads at home have hit a new high with not-so-clear rules of delegation for apparent reasons.
The kids are almost finishing up school using virtual technology as we inch closer to the Summer. The toddlers are eagerly waiting for their short, evening bike rides around the house. The old members of the family are happy to get some sun in the morning in the backyard and see some smiling faces throughout the day. The last couple of months have been unforgettable and historical. And so will the many months to come. And we will surely relay stories of these to our kids and the next generations for many more years to come.
When the going gets tough, the mindset matters!
As the weeks go by, we stay connected with friends and our ecosystem on social channels and via virtual technology. We find back all those precious moments with the family, the ones we had lost in the busyness and running around. We make time for unexplored passions — music, art, writing, cooking, gardening, project garage, project housecleaning, project pantry. We keep it hyper-organized with meal plans, morning alarms, and yoga schedules.
But somewhere along the way, on a few days, it gets to us — the monotony, the physical workload, the distancing, the built-in anxiety of what if it’s my family, the news, and the unpredictable future — all of it. I am sure we find ourselves saying ‘to hell with this’ in a few of those moments. Been there and felt that? You’re not alone.
But it’s in these times that we need what I call ‘the quarantine resilience.’ And that’s only possible by managing our response (not reaction) to this global pandemic. Here are a few of those mind hacks to mix up the routines, stay productive, manage responsibilities, and look forward to the next day!
And now, the hacks
1) Unschedule the schedule — sometimes monotony creates a vicious cycle — one from which you cannot step out of easily. Unless you flip your schedule around on its head. The proposal hence is to create random days. These are days where you go bottom-up on your schedule or thoroughly mix it up. Yoga can happen in the evening and the showers too. Use the mornings to do some power writing, music creation, or anything else that stirs your soul to get a head start. Do herbal tea instead of coffee, do protein shakes instead of your traditional breakfast — anything to break the daily mechanics. Try it.
2) Stagger the workload — we’re running at 100 mph every weekday morning. And granted, we don’t have the time or bandwidth to manage a cleaning schedule. But it’s easier to work in increments than putting a massive workload out on our calendars over the weekend. And besides, weekends are the time to relax, isn’t it?
3) Forcefully socialize every day — during this time, some of us go into our shells. Some under the pretext of too much work, and some because that’s our personality. But no matter what type of person you are — type A or type B, make sure to have a heart to heart with the friends and fam, and other extended ecosystems that don’t live with you. Staying connected with the ecosystem soothes the soul, and is also an opportunity to bring your distributed world closer. Share stories, work on creative projects virtually, catch up on life, do a happy hour — just anything but hit that call button. So this is time to rejigger the social channels and unmute your WhatsApp.
4) Think less-perfect — some of us have the habit of tying the perfect bow on everything we do. But in the time of a global crisis, it’s perfectly okay to live with a little bit of imperfection. When there’s a lot to manage — trying to make everything right is just going to result in an overworked mind. You will be churning 24/7 and running from one workload to another. So those unattended books and clothes in your kid’s room, those few dishes in the sink, that little clutter in the garage, let those go.
5) Create and experiment — I talked about this in a few other articles as well. This is a perfect situation to set aside time to fuel your mind. Let those creative juices flow for you and your family. For example, Friday and Saturday nights are jamming nights for us. I work with a few passionate members of my family that are spread across the globe to create and produce music. Part of the weekend is also dedicated to working with my son on creative projects like creating videos, making random art, and writing. The creative neurons bring renewed energy and satisfy the soul without any endgame in mind — a priceless experience.
6) Smell those flowers — we are in springtime in California, and the gardens are full of blooms. The meadows are still lush green, and the sun is blazing through the day! Something that we all avidly await as a respite from the winter and the rains. There’s no better way to refresh the mind than making it a habit to stay outdoors for at least an hour or two. If you enjoy gardening, that’s a perfect way. If you enjoy hiking and biking, then go for it, keeping the social distance in mind. And if it’s neither of these, then pull a chair into the garden and soak the sun. Your mind needs to smell those flowers.
7) Control-alt-delete a.k.a. daily purge — this was essential even before all this global pandemic happened. We live in times of information overload. Too much data is hitting us from all sides. It houses in various pockets of our mind and builds those mind storms. Not all information is unnecessary, though. And that’s why it is essential to do a selective purge each day to ensure that you’re starting the next day fresh. There are various ways to purge — nightly/evening meditations, keeping diaries, open conversations with families on the day, anything that may work for you. I have even seen people making a list of all the things that didn’t go well for them, and they move that document into the trash folder. I think that’s a brilliant way to start the new day.
Hoping these mind hacks will help you to get through and thrive in the next run of our quarantine. As I was telling someone earlier today, this is a historic time. A time we’ll not see again in many years to come hopefully. Make the most and the best of this experience. Thrive, create opportunities, and emerge as a better human being!
Let’s go!
