Hello from the middle of the pandemic. Our world has been turned upside down. ‘Shelter in place’ Quarantine, social distancing, physical distancing, COVID-19, The Rona, Corona, or as my Nana calls it, ‘The Covey’.

These are all terms and actions that were unheard of just a few months ago. Parents are adjusting to homeschooling their children, many while still working. Meme’s about day-drinking crowd our media feeds, and new case counts are updated daily.

So how do you stay motivated during isolation?

I don’t know about you, but I always tend to get motivated in the shower. I have all these great ideas about how to improve my business or chapters for the next book. And then it seems that as soon as I turn the water off and reach for the towel the motivation and ideas go down the drain.

They get lost in the laundry that still sits on the dining room table, only to be pushed aside enough to make room for my child’s Chrome Book for our new homeschooling adventure. They get lost in the pressures of making the best decision to keep my employees safe, working and paid.  They get lost in the isolation from friends and family.

Back when the world was normal, I spent most of my time with other people.

People who motivate and inspire. I had weekly Rotary lunches and board meetings. I had networking groups and groups of women in leadership that met just to relax and share ideas. I had people. People motivate me. People renew my energy.

I noticed that I went from texts and chats at the beginning of this thing called social distancing to ignoring them and then being sad because I missed people. It was a strange mix of emotions for me. Isolation, mixed with fear and uncertainty equaled a feeling that I couldn’t quite put my finger on. Then a wise friend gave it a name. Grief.

It didn’t make sense to me at first. I have not lost anyone to this virus. My business is essential, so I haven’t lost that.

How could I be grieving? I had no right to grieve. In fact, one of my good friends wrote about that here.

Then it hit me, I have lost my way of life.

Prior to Corona, I had a thriving business, a happy social life and a book and speaking career that was just beginning to take off. And now I had panic, Lysol, and Netflix. Of course, I have a healthy family and I count my blessings for that but I also have a loss.

In my book, I talk about identifying your feelings so you can deal with them correctly.

Once I identified my loss of motivation as a symptom of grief, I was able to take steps to ease the grief and regain my motivation.

I am a huge advocate for mentors and coaches. I have a CEO Coach that I pay and meet virtually every other week with. He his written over 50 books on business and travels the world speaking to CEO’s and companies on focused and effective leadership. He even has a coach that he pays. Coaching is important.

When I have my calls with my coach, I get off the phone feeling motivated. We end every call with take a ways and things I will accomplish by the next call. It gives me someone to be accountable to regarding my motivation to keep moving forward.

Video Chatting with friends. If I am being completely honest there are days that a scheduled video chat with friends is that only reason I have washed my hair. Knowing I have something to look forward to that somewhat resembles a social life gets me up and in the shower. I always feel so much better after the calls and I am constantly surprised at how quickly the time passes. Last Saturday my husband and I had a double date video call with out of state friends and we talked for 2.5 hours! I actually felt somewhat normal after the call!

Discovery calls with business associates. A discovery call or meeting is something I utilize with my coaching clients. It’s where you bring a problem or concern to the table and just openly discuss options to resolve the problem. Sometimes there doesn’t even have to be an actual problem. Discovery calls can be used to discus where you are in business and by putting two or more heads together you gain the knowledge you would have not otherwise had. In this season of our lives, I am using discovery calls to motive me. As I matter of fact this blog came after a discovery call with my Digital Director. As we talked about what was going on in the world, I began to take notes on how I’m staying motivated.

I have had discovery calls with business owners in fields very different from mine and I have gained knowledge and motivation from every single call. There is always something you can learn from others, and as an added bonus in this season the calls help you stay motivated.

Physical activity. Before Rona came to visit I started my morning at the gym 5 days a week. I started isolation on the weekend. My first weekend started with binge watching and laying in bed. That rolled over into the first week. I honestly was shocked at how quickly I got out of the routine of working out, and how much it effected my motivation. The first day I got up in the morning and worked out it was a struggle. My bed was warm, my husband was cuddling and I had no where to go and no motivation to get out of bed. But I did it. And even the pitiful little work out I did that morning was a game changer for me. I felt like a whole new person. I felt accomplished and ready to conquer the day.

The web is filled with home workout videos and exercise routines. There are even home workout support groups and trainers who will meet with you virtually to set up a routine and accountability for you during this time. One of my personal favorites is Lisafitt on Instagram. She posts at home exercises on her Instagram page that are easy to follow.

We will make it through this! It may be tough but following the tips above will bring back that motivation you are missing!

What are some ways that you have kept yourself motivated during this change?