Creativity in the time of COVID
HOW TO STAY CALM AND CREATIVE IN THE TIME OF COVID
In late January, I was in Sundance with a client and then New York on a press trip promoting a new project. Things were starting to get bad, we would hear things and read about things, and our intuition said to brace for the worst. I, a Walking Dead fan, semi expected zombies to start roaming the earth and the complete end of human civilization as we know it. However, in all seriousness, I was scared, and as I saw that things were starting to shut down, I distinctly remember going into the Duane Reade near my NYC hotel and buying 10 travel size antibacterial Lysol brand Wet Wipes and stuffing them in my carry-on suitcase for the plane ride back to LA. On the plane, people were just starting to wear masks and wipe down their seats and tray tables, but most did not. As I sanitized my space, and the quiet, was deafening… that lack of noise, the feeling of doom around us, I found myself having my first real anxiety attack in a long time.
A Xanax, some meditation, and deep breathing calmed me, as I put on my headphones and disappeared into the Rom-Coms of the early aughts. Shortly after I got back to LA, we watched as everyone state by state got shut down. That combined with weekly facetime and zoom calls with family and friends, doing arts and crafts with my niece to keep my creativity up, and getting on line at CVS at 8 am sharp to wait on a line for toilet paper while listening to a recorded mediation, became the norm. I found this routine, though at first disruptive, calming. It was something. A schedule. Not MY schedule but a schedule. So, I took it. Anything to stay calm.
So, I started to meditate, daily. I first focused on space (or lack of space), and on openness. I would find the calm in my mind, and light up thinking about my vibrant conversations with checkout gal at Whole Foods and the ones with my family on Facetime as I watch them do belly flops on weekends in the pool. Then I started to use my voice for me. I began to share honestly when someone would ask me how I was doing, even though no one was expecting me to. I would then thank my friends for being so supportive, listening to me and that act of kindness would help me get out of my funk and start to function, again.
Work was my only solace. When creativity is my lifeblood, I needed to find ways to not only survive but thrive. So, what do you do when you have been stuck in your home for months, turning on the news zaps your energy and you’re anxious because of the state of the whole friggin world? Well, you’re in luck! Here are some hacks that have helped me harness my creativity, and my sanity in these uncertain times and get re-energized about my work in PR again.
Find Your Focus:
With the way things are going in the world, the media coverage we consume is increasingly upsetting. When you must ingest content and media as part of your job, try hard not to fall into a rabbit hole of sad and depressing news. It has become so extra, and in your face, even Apple News cannot hide it. So, whatever industry you are in, try to contain your focus to the area in which you specialize in and waive the rest aside. Tune out the unnecessary noise that is not supportive of your career and what you need to know to function in your industry. Trust me it works. And if you need to see everything, perhaps try www.theskimm.com .
Meditate:
I know I mentioned it above but make some room in your day to meditate. My favorite app is the 21-day mediations on Oprah + Deepak Chopra’s Mediation app and finding what works for me each day. I do not do them in order, I actually flip through to see what resonates of what I need to hear that morning. These meditations are short, digestible, and a complete and wonderful introspection and respite from the noise.
Going to Work/sort of:
Okay, so I know that we are all WFH these days, but it is totally OK to pretend! To get myself out of my funk and back into my creative zone, a couple of times a week, I get up in the morning, get dressed and pretend to go to work. Yes, you heard that right, I dust off my work wardrobe and leave for “the office” around the time I used to. I get in my car, turn on the radio and go for a drive – even if it is just around the block. Sometimes walk from my apartment to the Starbucks or the bank or the CVS to get my steps in. It completely revitalizes you. Also if your apartment or home is not that sunny, listen to this: I have also been known to park myself on the side of the road and take in the sunshine out of my sunroof in my car and just close my eyes and daydream. It helps. Trust me. It gives me a sense of normalcy and lets me safely get in touch with the outside world.
Break a Sweat:
So, yes, I have Peloton and I have found that trying to take the live classes (even when they are at an ungodly early OR late hour) really gets me going and forgetting about everything else so I can function for other people. For me, spinning to nowhere, or virtually visiting other countries via their bike, is a quick way to shake me out of my depression zone, get the blood flowing, and get motivated. Breaking a sweat is so healthy and you will get out of your state of polarization and feel like you can accomplish the world.
You Are Not Alone
While we know that most of the things we see on our social media pages are not totally transparent and that we never really know what someone else is going through, you should take a second to truly realize that you are not alone. If I am at home writing this blog, there are others also writing, feeling the same way, or not writing at all and wishing they could get out of their funk. Even though you are physically alone, you are not alone. The great news is that the world has become a place where you can work anywhere if you are plugged in to your phone or your computer. So, once we get that vaccine, and it makes traveling easier and safer, we can really be anywhere. So, if close to family on the other side of the world or the country makes you work better do it. For now, remember that we are all in this together, even though it may not feel like it. If you need a reminder read this: https://www.nytimes.com/2020/04/20/smarter-living/how-to-manage-your-loneliness.html
A Calm Home is a Calm Mind
If you know me, you know I have a lot of stuff. Before the pandemic, my home was a place to rest and recharge before going out into the world again. I had an office specifically to leave my cluttered brain and papers THERE. Now, sans office, I spend my whole day at home, the clutter that I was so accustomed too was becoming overwhelming. I am NOT a hoarder. The first few months, I used to have files and binders stacked up so high under my home that I couldn’t rest my feet comfortably. So I decided this was a great time to PURGE! How much do you really need! Piles, just like in cleaning out a closet. One pile for Garbage, one pile for storage and one pile for what you need. And then GONE!
To end this, I will share this with you. Deepak Chopra once said that “Gratitude opens the door to the power, the wisdom, the creativity of the universe” and I agree completely (hopefully now you understand why I like his meditation app so much). Every day, I find one new thing to be thankful for. It does not have to be big, but I find that it can offer hope in a time of such collective despair. I hope you will take a look at what I do, and maybe a few of these things work for you. Read more blogs from me in the coming weeks as I start to let it all out …… as its time I had a voice too.