No wonder we’re exhausted. Our working lives have been catapulted into chaos. Many of us have experienced furlough, restructures or redundancy (or all three).
We’ve had to adapt quickly to working remotely. Most charities have been forced to cut back and adapt their products and services while the need for services has increased. We’ve had to change quickly without preparation and without knowing how long for or what might happen next.
Uncertainty is a natural and unavoidable part of life. None of us ever have absolute certainty over what tomorrow will bring. And as the coronavirus outbreak has shown, life can change quickly and unpredictably.
The challenge for all of us is that human beings are wired to seek certainty. When we’re faced with uncertainty our brain believes our safety is threatened. This triggers us into a fight, flight or freeze response. When we’re in a fight, flight or freeze state our ability to make decisions, collaborate and solve problems is impaired. We want to feel safe and have a sense of control over our lives and well-being. In an uncertain world, our need for certainty fuels worry and anxiety and makes the management of uncertainty a constant in our lives.
And it’s exhausting managing worry and anxiety, especially over a long period of time. And when we’re depleted it has a knock on effect on our resilience and our confidence.
So if you’re feeling exhausted, worn out and that you’ve not got much left in your reserves then you’re not alone. And you’re forgiven if your confidence has taken a nosedive too.
I work with fundraising managers who are leading teams, helping them respond to constant change under the increased pressure to raise money for services that are a) changing and b) more in demand than ever before.
I believe that one of the most important factors in successfully managing any sort of change; whether you’re responding to it, for example a global pandemic or you’re creating it, for example developing new products, services and processes, is keeping your confidence high.
If you’re feeling the pressure of managing uncertainty or you’re just exhausted which is knocking your confidence I’ve recorded a quick 25-minute training webinar on keeping your confidence high at work. You can watch it here.