Covid 19 Lockdown and How You Can Benefit
I won’t come close to ticking everyones box here, but from an online marketers point of view, this is how me and my family are handling the Covid 19 lockdown and how you can benefit.
What is a Black Swan?
“A black swan is an unpredictable event that is beyond what is normally expected of a situation and has potentially severe consequences. Black swan events are characterized by their extreme rarity, their severe impact, and the widespread insistence they were obvious in hindsight.”
New Experiences
Never in my lifetime have we experienced something like this. You may hear some war time veterans or similarly people who experienced WWII in the 40’s comparing the Covid 19 epidemic to a wartime situation.
Well, they’d be right doing so. We are fighting an enemy and an invisible one at that!
But let’s not get caught up in it, trying to explain it all. Let’s simply focus on getting through these unprecedented times the best we can and try to be positive!
Lockdown
If you are like me, you are on lockdown and abiding by the government instructions of social distancing and 1 hour of fitness per day (each and every day).
“I can’t stress to you more to take full advantage of your time outside!”
If you are not doing any kinds of fitness, then it’s time to start. You will be so surprised at how your body reacts. The health benefits are amazing. Weight loss, better sleep, increased mental attitude and a sense generally feeling good!
If you are used to fitness, then you will be making the most of your time like me…
Building your business
If you work a day job, I’m guessing you have seen a massive difference. Here in the UK, with the exception of key workers, the government subsidised most incomes so we as a nation can stay at home.
Some people however are not so lucky, such as the self employed who have been hit hard with very little in the way of support. At this time I really feel for these people and if this is you – stay safe, we will get through this.
Online Income
If you are like me and run a business from home, or have a side hustle where you can work from home, now is the time to really get stuck into your business the best you can.
I know, like me you may have families to take care of, and home schooling to do, but do try to work on your business or create something you can be proud of when all this shit comes to an end!
A Sense of Normality
You may be asking why work on your business when the government is paying your wages, or why work on your online biz when there isn’t much point or hope?
You may be asking why start an online business when no one is spending money? Or even what’s there to be proud of when there is no end in sight?
Well, to put in quite simply, we are human in nature and we need routine! And to put it another way… you have a shed load of time on your hands, so get off Netflix and bloody do something!
Routines
The bottom line of all this mess is, try to build a routine into your life. Don’t spend your days sitting in your pyjamas drinking red wine and beer and binge watching TV!
See this situation as an opportunity. Just because the world has stopped doesn’t mean you have to?
They say, it’s a global reset. So go ahead and reset your own life and take the time as a gift to do something new. Stay home and create something magical, you may just surprise yourself and what you can really achieve.
Here’s My Routine
This is my routine below. It’s not regimental, it’s a loose routine built into my days, so I get stuff done and feel a good sense of achievement when I complete my day.
- Wake up around 7am
- Cycle for 1 hour
- Breakfast (usually some form of eggs)
- Black coffee
- Plan my day ahead and bullet tasks while I watch the news (I have a planner diary which helps)
- Work on my tasks
- Stop for lunch
- Work on my tasks
- Complete my day around 4 or 5PM
In between all of the above, I make time for my kids, cook lunch for them and maintain a steady line of English Tea for my wife who is also working from home.
I don’t dwell on the news, sit in my pyjamas, drink or binge Netflix, these are saved for evenings and weekends as they usually would be (yes I’m not a machine).
I hope you can see the value in working while on lockdown, or doing something you wouldn’t normally do to maintain a sense of routine.
Give it a try, if anything it will help you to stay sane. Also remember, that this won’t last forever! So stay safe and ride the storm…
A Webinar Worth Watching
If you are interested in starting something new and getting the most from lockdown, I suggest checking out the webinar below. My friend John can really help hit home what we have discussed today.
Check it out HERE
Discussion
Thanks for reading Covid 19 lockdown and how you can benefit. How are you handling lockdown? Please let me know…
I find your analysis and summaries well put together Dan. Key to maintaining a level of normality during this difficult time certainly lies in establishing a routine. The way that you have structured your day (with room to manouver) will be of value to anyone wondering how to make their Corona Virus isolation days go around.
Routine is also a valuable way of reducing the confusion or dilemma a lot of people face when making simple daily choices.
You often see it in the sandwich queue at a takeaway shop when folk are ordering their lunch. Not much thought about things until they get to the counter then there is a pregnant pause while they start to make up their mind. Should I have this or maybe that. No the ham seems like a good idea. Meanwhile others in the queue start to shuffle their feet.
And I tell this because some years ago I listened to a well talker give a short explanation of the advantages ordering the same item for lunch every day. He said there was no angst, you knew exactly what you were getting and the time saved was significant. In conclusion he said that he had ordered the same thing for lunch for about 10 years or more.
Establishing a routine for many of the day to day things in life will certainly improve ones performance and reduce the stress and the time taken to achieve an outcome.
And for the record my standard lunch order when I was working was a ham, cheese and tomato sandwich on wholegrain bread. It definitely works!
I’m more of a tuna mayo guy Ian. Thanks for the comment. In these times, I believe we need to have routine to prevent us from going insane. Too much news, tv and sitting around isn’t good for anyone!
Thanks for the takeaway analogy 🙂
Dan