Creating a New Normal During Uncertain Times

The COVID-19 pandemic has changed a lot of things. From the way you spend time with friends and family, to doing business, traveling, and even how you like to use your free time, every activity has to conform to the new social distancing norms to help slow the spread of the virus. As with every form of change, it is normal to feel stressed out about the whole situation, but it is important to remember that every crisis eventually comes to an end. And the best part is that you can help speed up this process and create a new, better normality, right here, right now. 

Create new routines

Whether very strict or very relaxed, you most definitely had a routine that worked for you before the pandemic. But now almost all of your routines have probably become completely unrecognizable. Take the process of going to work for example. With many people working from home and many others still having to go to the office but with drastically altered schedules, this once reliable process has changed for everybody all at once, creating a lot of stress. 

To combat this form of stress, it is necessary to go to the very source of the problem: you need to consciously create new routines. 

You can start by making a realistic daily schedule for you and your family. It is important to set times for work, meals, wellness, and even family time. This will help everybody at home find their rhythm. 

Get a new hobby

Use the power of the internet to get into a new hobby you can do at home. Maybe you’d like to learn a new language, take a cooking class, become a movie buff, learn to code, or catch up on your reading. All of these activities, and many more, can be done from the comfort of your own home and any supplies you might need can be delivered easily to your door. Just remember to open up a time slot for your new hobbies on your schedule. 

Adapt your habits

Habits such as exercising, drinking coffee with a colleague every morning, going out for drinks with your friends every two weeks, or having romantic dinner with your significant other need to be adapted to your new reality because they are very important to your well-being. So take 5 minutes each morning to hop on a call with your colleague while you are drinking your coffee, set up a video-conference night with all your friends every two weeks, and have your romantic evening with your s.o. right in your very own dinner table.  

Stay positive

All of these tips can only work if you keep a positive mindset through the adaptation process, remember that it will definitely take some time until it stops being awkward but it is worth it.