responsibilities and goals . “ I can ’ t tell you , in the last six months to a year , how many clients have called me and said , ‘ I could really use your help . We ’ ve cut resources 40 percent ; we ’ ve cut budgets 40 percent ,’” Kyricos said . In response , Kyricos noted that she asks these clients what is on their stop list . “ I usually stop them dead in their tracks . I ’ m just curious , have you proportionately cut the to-do list to match the resources that have shrunk ? Because ultimately , your first priority is to determine what you ’ re going to stop doing to allow more space for what ’ s truly important .”
By granting yourself and your team permission to pursue only the tasks that are essential during periods of extreme stress , Kyricos shared , leaders can care for the collective well-being of their businesses ’ most valuable asset . “ It could be as easy as , at the next staff meeting , everybody brings a list of things they think we should stop and talk about and share it and prioritize it and publish it for the group . As a leader , I think it ’ s one of the most powerful things you can do at this time .”
a compassionate perspective
For so much of the time dating back to the beginning of the pandemic , many of us have been inundated with tips , tricks and advice on how to reduce stress and increase resilience . This overflow of guidance is not a bad thing in and of itself ; however , the constant stream of articles , podcasts and social media posts on these subjects can sometimes lead us to believe that such practices are easy to master . The reality , though , is that even the most mindful among us will sometimes struggle with the stress of the moment . When that happens , said Renee Moorefield , adopting a compassionate mindset about your own wellbeing journey is critical .
“ So often , we ’ re in the moment , but then there ’ s this judgment of ,‘ Well , am I doing this mindfulness practice right ?’” Moorefield explained . This feeling of doubt is best countered by reminding ourselves that it ’ s normal to feel tested by moments of major strain .“ If we have gotten stressed out during the pandemic , if we feel frazzled , if we feel torn this way and that way , this is normal ,” Moorefield said .“ This is actually a normal part of our experience — we are being challenged in a way that we haven ’ t been challenged before . So if we can remember that human beings are not problems to be fixed , hopefully the experience within will be different .”
Instead of framing our response to stress as a problemsolution dynamic that ends with us successfully immunizing ourselves against worry or anxiety altogether , we should view it like a journey that will continue throughout our lives , one where the goal is steady growth rather than a “ correct ” or “ final ” destination .“ We are on a sincere journey of well-being ,” Moorefield said .“ And if you take off the word ‘ well ’ in ‘ well-being ,’ it ’ s a journey of ‘ beingness .’ So who are we ? How do we want to show up ? Who do we want to become ? We are having this fantastic opportunity — challenging and fantastic at the same time — to ask those kinds of questions .” n systemic Issues ?
“ I think sometimes the word resilience is used in an individual capacity , and I think it ’ s so important that we also zoom out and think about the systems that we ’ re all operating in .” With these words , Jane Cho highlighted an important truth : the pandemic isn ’ t the only challenge many individuals in marginalized groups are facing , and the systems in which they live and work can often place add persistent stress to their lives . “[ We have to ] really look at the systems that
are operating that empower resilience and systems that are operating that really erode and break down resilience . How can we be more sensitive to and empathetic to the type of resilience that someone might need in order to overcome some of the systemic barriers that they ’ re experiencing ? Keeping that in mind and sharing that responsibility will really move the needle in a more meaningful way .”
JULY 2021 ■ PULSE 35