Where do we go from here?

Editor's note: Based in Stamford, Conn., Christina Nathanson is a seasoned insights strategist.

Let’s face it: 2020 has been a year for the record books. We all thought 2020 was supposed to be about a clear vision but what did it actually prove to be? To me, it’s felt a little like getting stuck halfway through putting on a sports bra after not thoroughly drying off from a shower. I’m just waiting for someone to help cut me out of this thing!

We’ve had our fair share of Zoom meetings, Netflix bingeing and social distancing. There were no graduations or proms. Parents became teachers and teachers became technology experts. You may have lost your job, been furloughed or saw unusual gaps in your calendar because research plans and budgets were frozen and your company’s sales declined significantly.

As researchers, we need to stick together even through losses, insecurities and setbacks. Events like this can rock us to the core and strip away our assumptions. They push you to reconsider what is most important. 

My goal with this article is to leave you with a new way of thinking, no matter where you are in your career life stage. 

There’s a great quote by my late uncle Hank Virgona, a New York artist: “The things you see out of the corners of your eyes are the things that are most important.” He pointed out that as an individual, there are so many instances where we just go about our day-to-day, missing out on the little bits and pieces around us, the lighting, the shadows, the way something – someone, a new idea, a competitor – is sitting there, right next to us and we just missed it. Countless episodes of our lives are lost because of the numerous distractions and diversions that take place. 

Why do I mention Hank? He was no marketing guy but for all intents and purposes, he was right!

This leads to the first tenet: Be powerful – find your why.

Uncle Hank played a significant role in who I am today. He was a New York City artist, rode the subway to and from his home in Queens, N.Y., to his art studio in Union Square until he was 89. He observed everyday people on his daily commute, his “models,” in their natural habitats. Life was simple and art became his muse. In just a few strokes, behind a newspaper, sketchbook and pencil in hand, he captured and preserved people and objects around him. He illustrated sorrow, happiness, anger and stillness almost every day until he could not commute anymore. 

In December 2018, his art posse organized a one-man show called The Full Virgona. This two-week event rejuvenated him in his why – his love for art and for people. On opening night, he sold 45 paintings; he had not sold that much in over five years. This turning point in his art career gave him the momentum to continue making art until the end of his life, just five-and-a-half months later. His rediscovery of his why late in life prompted our two worlds to collide as he passed his legacy and art responsibilities to me as executor. (For more about his life and his art, check out the documentary “Nothing Changes: Art for Hank’s Sake” by my nephew Matthew Kaplowitz. It’s free if you are an Amazon Prime member!)

Since I was unemployed, I took the time to personify Hank and elevate him to the level he deserved. He always said to me, “The difference between Picasso and me was that Picasso had a better agent.” Well, Hank, I hope to make you even more famous as I undertake the role of art consultant and curate your works. While I’m not artistic, I am a marketer. I understand Hank and can become his persona. I love hosting virtual gallery showings on Zoom as it’s given me exposure to a whole new network of creative people and lets me tell stories about him through his art. 

A blog post from Scarlett Erin, a writer and counselor from Assignment Star in the U.K., entitled “Your why matters: the 10 benefits of knowing your purpose in life,” has served as a compass for me. As she explains in her post, knowing your why:

• Helps you stay focused. When you know your life’s purpose, it becomes easier to focus on what matters the most in your life. Uncle Hank focused on his art and the objects and people around him, revisiting his why every day. Focus has grounded me in my darkest days. 
• Makes you feel passionate about your goal. Knowing your why helps you find your true passion and this feeling becomes an essential driver for achieving something extraordinary. While Hank didn’t sell a lot of art, he knew that there was a meaning behind it. His passion pushed him to reach his goal of painting every single day.
• Gives your life clarity. People who know their why in life are unstoppable. You have a goal, you won’t waste your time on sweating the small stuff. Hank knew his purpose; he also didn’t sugarcoat it either. 
• Makes you feel gratified. When you feel gratitude, you express it regularly and base your decisions, thoughts, feelings and actions around that overarching purpose. Hank saw good in others, thus making a more significant impact through his work, which encourages a sense of gratification. He was also thankful that he could still do his art every day. 
• Makes life even more fun. When you know your purpose, you enjoy every minute of it. There is so much pleasure in living a powerful, purpose-driven life and better tackling every situation in a creative way. Even the dullest thing becomes beautiful and artistic. You become one with others.

This points us to the second tenet: Stay resilient – shift your mind-set.

You’re probably tired of hearing the word resilient as it’s been used in so many advertisements over the past several months. But resilience is important because it allows us to develop a positive means to protect against experiences that could be upsetting. It also serves as a way to maintain equilibrium in our lives, especially during stressful times like COVID-19. However, resilience doesn’t just come overnight. 

I have some advice on how I’ve stayed resilient and shifted my mind-set. 

Data visualization is everything to me! Seeing an aspect of my life in a visual way added so much more meaning to what I was trying to accomplish. During quarantine, I committed to exercising at least 30 minutes of activity, sometimes more, every day. It was difficult to make this commitment when Netflix and the couch were so close to where I worked out in our house. But as I looked back at my activity log on my Apple Watch since the quarantine, I was shocked! 

To keep the exercise habit alive, I started free Orangetheory virtual workouts with a friend who kept me accountable and I posted daily updates to my Instagram story. Sometimes we did them on Zoom together. Other times we used our apps to log in. Not only did we get fit but we also had followers who reacted to our story, catching the attention of the local fitness studio. We built up our own community and tribe. Further, I’m extremely proud of this because I am physically stronger and have a stronger immune system. 

Mental health is also critical. According to the American Psychological Association, mindfulness meditation can improve both mental and physical health. Self-talk and meditation will enhance resilience – just five minutes a day can keep you sane. Meditation helps people stress less, focus more and, most of all, sleep! Headspace is an app that makes meditation really easy, teaching you life-changing mindfulness skills in just a few minutes a day.

Another way to stay balanced and improve resilience is through journaling as it allows you to talk to yourself without judgment. If you find it difficult to start writing, you can try a guided journal. I purchased “One Question a Day: A Five-Year Journal” for each member of my family for the holidays last year. It offers one random question per day to be answered on the same day for five years in a row. The questions range from prosaic, “What did you have for lunch today?” to the contemplative, “Can people really change?” On other days, I have literally written, “WTH is this world coming to?” or “I don’t know how I managed to survive that (whatever).” 

Finding a creative outlet to be optimistic about and having some feel-good vibes around the neighborhood made for more positivity. For example, we painted rocks and left them in front of a neighbor’s tree or in a rock garden to show our gratitude. I also hosted a virtual wine glass painting night with six friends on Zoom, where we spent an hour or two sipping wine, chatting, painting and observing the beauty in our creativity. (I think the wine may have helped.)

To recap, how can we stay resilient? 

Shift the mind-set. The saying “birds of a feather flock together” is true. Surround yourself with like-minded people who match your desired mind-set. They don’t have to be in your career – my Orangetheory Fitness community became my tribe. You will feel better about yourself and will have a stronger foundation for your roots. 

Keep up the positive self-talk. Honestly, if you tell yourself that life sucks and that it’s going to be awful, it probably will be. Saying “I can do this” instead of “I can’t” works. For me, those Orangetheory classes were tough. I said to myself, “I can do anything for 30-60 seconds at a time.” And remember, modify if you have to. Posting on my Instagram story every day started a tribal following and made me accountable and helped me change my language from “I can’t” to “I can.” 

Take care of your mind as well as your body. Some days, you need to be alone. If the only free time or place you have is either in the shower or on the toilet, take advantage of those moments. Close your eyes. Meditate with Headspace and breathe. Other times, you need to work out – it could be a long walk or a 30-minute video. If your mind and body are strong, you will become stronger.

Sometimes you can’t go it alone, which means connections are important. Sift through your LinkedIn list and find successful colleagues from your past and message them. “Hey, it’s been a while. I really miss how we used to sit in your office after a long meeting and chat. Do you have some time next week to connect via phone or Zoom?” You don’t have to have a particular ask but you never know what will come out of it. Just updating each other on your lives may create a new venture for both of you.

Lastly, be optimistic. An easy way to do this is to write down one thing every day that brings you joy and put it in a jar. When you are feeling down, pick a note out of the joy jar. For me, it was my Instagram posts or sharing the rocks that I painted with others. By the end of the week, there will be many things to share with a group of friends who can share their moments of joy too. And all of this can be very healing. 

And now we’ve reached tenet three: Be fulfilled – try something new.

Shark Tank entrepreneur and Dallas Mavericks basketball team owner Mark Cuban has been a driving force to support small businesses during the coronavirus crisis. His advice for those out of work during COVID-19: collect unemployment; don’t stop applying for jobs; and most important, make use of whatever downtime you have to brush up on the skills that might impress your future employer. As he has said, “The first question every interviewer is going to ask you is: What did you learn during the pandemic of 2020? What skills did you add?”

Not sure where to begin? I’ll share a few tips to get you started.

One thing that has saved me is LinkedIn Learning. It’s an online educational platform that helps you explore business, technology-related and creative skills through expert-led course videos. The learning I have undertaken has paid off in spades, including courses on writing articles and blogs, SEO and Google Analytics, how to use HubSpot and WordPress and also the basics of blockchain. And you can post the certificates on your LinkedIn profile, adding to your toolbox of new skills.

Salesforce is great if you are in sales and find yourself with more downtime than you prefer. Even if you don’t use Salesforce in your business, you will pick up tips and tricks along the way. 

Research Rockstar delivers specific research training as well as offering freelance opportunities if you’re looking. Its president, Kathryn Korostoff, is an amazing instructor, too. I took a behavioral economics class with her in May and learned more than I even bargained for. 

Through the end of 2020, Class Central reports that Coursera is offering free certificates for 115 courses, ranging from personal branding to marketing analytics. Another online tool is eLearning Industry, with both paid and free courses, webinars and seminars. 

I can’t go any further without mentioning the importance of networking. Aside from LinkedIn, I have stumbled across a few great resources to find like-minded people. Fairygodboss is all about improving the workplace for women by celebrating, supporting and connecting them. Its co-founders, Georgene Huang and Romy Newman, are committed to providing a free digital platform for millions of women to access anonymous job reviews, community advice and jobs at top-rated companies for women. You can chat with other career go-getters and connect on advice across the spectrum anonymously if you wish. If you are an independent consultant, EM Marketing is a great resource. Not only is it a marketing consulting company but it also facilitates an independent consulting forum with a Slack channel as well. We have lively Zoom discussions and share ideas and resources with the consultant community. The last one is Sweathead, a private Facebook group to help people who think for a living practice how they think. They encourage participation on their Facebook page and post questions, ideas, frameworks, videos and articles that will help people approach their work in better ways. Hosted by Mark Pollard, it’s a really different way of learning.

To be fulfilled, it’s important to spice it up and bit and try something new every once in a while.

• Be resourceful. As Mark Cuban mentioned, make use of whatever downtime you have to brush up on skills that could impress your future employer. Carve out 30 minutes a day for online classes. If you are working, look at your company’s website for specific management development training. If you have a lull in sales, start a Salesforce module even if you don’t use it. Also, there are opportunities to get certified and pass an exam given by a certifying body which you can leverage when job-hunting or asking for a promotion. Depending on your industry, there are multiple certification options, programs and organizations to choose from.
• Exploit the heck out of the free or low-cost educational courses that you can take. You’ll gain solid experience and some will also offer a certificate to prove you took that course. In addition to free training, try something new. There are webinars available to learn more about a specific topic in a short period of time, usually 30-60 minutes. Even better, they’re guided by someone, often in real-time, so you can ask questions and enjoy that classroom feel.
• And don’t forget to network. At the recent Quirk’s Virtual Event, I connected with 20 new people the day I presented the session this article is based on. I loved it! Every new person you connect with brings the potential for a new adventure. As the kids used to say, “YOLO!”