I hope you and those close to you are safe and well. These are challenging times and they are certainly invoking a lot of different emotions for people. As a leader, all we can do is provide support to our teams and encourage them to make themselves the priority. If your experience is anything like my own, you probably jumped into the response to the pandemic with a sense of gusto and challenge; however, as the weeks march on it can be difficult to maintain that motivation.

Last Thursday and Friday I noticed my motivation starting to wane. On the back of this experience I created a simple model to help me focus on the important things… the things that will keep me motivated. I’ve called it the C.O.D.E.S. model. It’s deceptively simple and it’s been very effective in helping me (and a few of the clients I’ve shared it with) stay focused and motivated.

So how does it work?

C – CONNECT. During this time it’s vital to make of a conscious effort to connect with friends, family, and work colleagues. Commit to chatting with a minimum of 2 people a day… just for a chat.

O – ORGANISE. Don’t leave this to chance. Consciously organise your day. Commit to achieving at least one important thing for work, and one important thing for your personal life. Write it down first thing in the morning and schedule it into your day.

D – DIET. Get away from that fridge! You’re probably not hungry, you’re just bored. Keep an eye on this, it’s so easy to fall into poor eating habits during these times which you’re likely to regret later on. Eat well – feel well.

E – EXERCISE. Exercise is the body’s natural remedy to stress, anxiety and depression. No matter how much you don’t want to get out and about, commit to at least 20 minutes of exercise a day. A fast walk does wonders to our mood, body composition, and general health.

S – SLEEP. Without a good night’s sleep you’re no good to anybody. I won’t go into the physiological importance (not benefits… importance!) of sleep here but make sure you’re getting your 7 – 8 hours a night.

There you have it. If you focus on these things you’ll find you’re in a much better position, physically and mentally, when the country opens up again.

I hope you find this model useful and do something with it. You have to put these things into practice (consistently) to get the results.

If you’d like to know more about how to achieve more in life or business, or if you’d like to explore how coaching can help you become a better leader (of others or yourself!), or even if you’re just generally curious about what professional coaching can offer you, please contact us at any time for a free consultation.

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