Lets be honest - the clouds are going to come. They're not all going to rain on your parade and neither do they all have silver linings, but they are going to come. We live in a time where uncertainty is most definitely a certainty. In our new book, When The Clouds Come, we look those difficulties directly in the eye and consider, what now?
Drew Povey
This is a time when were all looking for the things that might bring us back to some semblance of normality. To that sense of certainty, stability and security that we may have felt a few years back.
But in reality, Im not sure that searching for that allusive normalis ever really going to work out.
And this is not about being negative or a doom-monger, but instead its a realisation. Instead we have to learn to deal with the certainty of uncertainty and all that this entails. Worry, fear, and a lack of comfort zone, are what we know. So we need to consider how we learn to live from these feelings and even lean into them.
More often than not, getting back up again leads us to be knocked down again - for a second or third time. Were talking about honest and realistic optimism. We want to understand the uncertainty which we face and explore ways to deal with it. Whilst this is unquestionable tricky, it is certainly possible.
When the going gets tough and the difficulties come, our evolution tells us to survive in any way possible. So its natural to want to protect ourselves, to hide or fight back. Were programmed to see the negatives and get caught up in the difficult moment. We're finely tuned to see the molehill and making a mountain. But how does that help us?
We need to take the uncertainty - and reframe it for our own purposes. We hit the bottom and we feel stuck. The difficulty feels personal, it feels permanent, and it feels pervasive. But only in the emotion and the catastrophe of the storm are any of those things true. It doesnt matter what the difficulty, or how dark the storm clouds, you and your support network can look at uncertainty and find a positive way through it.
To help you navigate your way through, look at the issue or problem you are facing with these three things in mind:
Impersonal - we hate to say it, but most difficulties arent unique to you, you are not alone in experiencing them, and you can find others who can help and support you to understand them.
Impermanent - this too shall pass: the cliche stands true, for the good times and the bad times. You will see another dawn, and the sun will shine once more. But until then, look at what you have in this moment, pause and reflect on what you might do next, and even in that moment, the difficulty will have changed and time moved on.
Specific - and lastly, a storm may come made up of many different clouds, but they are all different and unique, and require a different approach. We don't subscribe to a one-size fits all method of resilience, but a nuanced and considered approach to each cloud. Some rain clouds you can dance in, some you run through, some you take shelter from, but all of them need different responses.
So remember this when the clouds come - and they will - you’re not alone, this is not unique, and this too will pass. Uncertainty does not have to be a negative experience - but you can thrive and move forward, even after that storm has hit.
About the authors:
Drew Povey is an influential leadership authority with a unique multi sector viewpoint on creating innovative and sustainable change. He has over twenty years’ experience working in elite level sport and education.
In the last decade he has also been privileged enough to work with charitable organisations, SMEs, multi-national businesses, the NHS and with the Police.
This extensive network of partnerships has led to the implementation of many of Drew’s philosophies and concepts. His work and methods have been proven to empower individuals and teams to exceed in this ever-changing business world.
For more information visit www.drewpovey.co.uk and follow @drewpovey
Sam Draper is an English teacher and writer who taught for over 17 years in London schools and has written for a wide range of publications having started his career as a journalist at the BBC and Sky.
He writes on a wide range of subjects from education through to fatherhood, gender equality, and flexible working.
Sam is also The London Bookman, a book concierge service for those who love to read and are short on time. He has clients ranging from the royal household to footballers in the Premier League.
For more information, visit www.thelondonbookman.com or follow @alondonbookman
