As you allow good things to flow in love and care begin to blossom in all parts of your life. You don't shed away relationships in order to remain safe or protected. You don't work so hard anymore to belong. You are carefree, yourself, not needing to do anything but be authentic.

Bonds which are healthy are natural, easy, full of laughter and lightness, but also depth and meaning. All of the love which is inside of you flows naturally and there is a protracted sense of flow as well as deepening of the bonds that nurture your insides which are strong and powerful rather than insecure parts of you.

Things come easy. Relationships deepen, and trust builds with time no more but it is the bind which healthy allows for honesty, authenticity, as well as healing to occur once and for all. With care and nurturing of healthy bonds old scars fall away and there is space for love to bloom.

What bonds are deepening for you during Covid? How can you naturally allow relationships to grow and develop rather than scar or be hard?

The pandemic has been a time of self-reflection, letting go of things which don't matter, but mainly a time of opening up to and accepting the now. We all have been learning the art of change, transition, allowing those things which are not working to go but also now strengthening the muscle of bringing towards us those things which are most important.

When we take the time to really remove those things which don't bring us joy, don't truly matter in the larger scheme of things, don't really elevate us to our highest potential then space opens up for the most important things to arrive. We often take things for granted pre-pandemic. Just being with unimportant things, wasting time and energy or focus on the wrong things because they are there or we are avoiding the truth.

But what the pandemic brought about was a lot of time to reflect, but it also took away those things which didn't matter because we couldn't do them. While I enjoyed large gatherings or dancing, the most important things like time with family and friends is what really matters to me and moving forward in other areas of my life which I was not opening up to due to staying too busy.

Now with the pandemic I couldn't run anymore and had to slow down. As a result the best things are finally coming into my life- things I have been wanting for a long time and I am fully enjoying the fruits of wisely letting go. 

What are you allowing into your life now?

As we have all been witnessing in the US with Covid and George Floyd's death and now the picking of Kamala Harris as the Democratic VP pick a lot of old structures are falling away and there is opening for the new. While the new is not quite here yet I believe that we are all getting a chance to tolerate things that we used to endure no more. We are realizing more and more what is important. We are elevating the right things and letting go of those which are no longer useful to us. We are adjusting to what is real for us and truly what we need to thrive.

While that is change it is truly important to recognize that change is like a metamorphosis. It takes time and effort to allow for the wrong things to go, heal from the differences coming, but most importantly transition (e.g. - allow for the rights things to show up). 

As a result of all of this transition this time can feel hard, strained, no longer comfortable or easy, but let's not pretend that opening up, letting go of the easy ways of being nor being fully open and vulnerable to allow happier things to flow in is easy. In fact it takes being authentic, setting boundaries, speaking your truth and not allowing injustice to flow anymore. We all collectively have to take a stand against bad behavior, structures that impede, and/or self-imposed structures which do not allow for the development of true deep wise healthy movements forward.

What are you tolerating that you need to let go of? What do you need to allow in? How can you follow your truth?

Letting go is adapting to the current situation. It is opening up and being aware of the stuck places inside. It is worthily being flexible to change and not clinging to situations which are comfortable but not truly healthy for you or getting you to where you want to go. 

This long weekend I did a four day silent meditation retreat. It was powerfully grinding to a halt everything that I had been pursuing actively to be present, to be mindful, but to mainly just allow my mind to witness and observe what was going on in my mind and let go of any attachments.

I realized through that process that letting go is mastering who we are. It is flowing with the currents of life and not trying to control or debate true reality. It is letting all of the deep joy emerge from our true selves and letting that shine through. It is fully being alive each and every single moment and not looking back with regret or forward with worry. It is truly being.

I feel so grateful for the experience of true inner rejuvenation. What are you grateful for? What do you need to let go?

As we all have been in a changing environment for the last 3 months I have finally learned to let go of control. Whenever I  doubt myself or lose faith in things I allow myself to focus more on putting myself into action, in trying to force or make things happen, but mainly not allowing things to freely flow or dance with life. Without the dance often work or life situations would not flourish but whither away and die which I never quite understood or couldn't seem to stop myself from pushing or forcing things to happen.

But now with Covid and with the forced slow down for a while I realized that all is happening without my controlling it. And just flowing with the change is much easier than struggling, pushing, forcing, and/or working hard all the time without any results. Instead I got quiet, meditated a lot more, listened to the intuition that was heightened as a result of the meditation and took action on it.

My intuition seems to always be right and whenever I follow it I immediately am not worried, forget about challenging those who I participate in the actions with but mainly I allow the dance to occur. I am listening to the still small voice within and not negating its presence and/or not listening to it. When I do that I realize I am no longer forcing things or trying to be in control, but I am allowing and thereby being flexible, adaptable, and finally in the flow.

How can you let go of control and be in the dance too?

​

Well it has been a heck of a last couple of weeks. On top of the Covid Situation there was the terrible death of George Floyd and its associated protests and speaking out here in Washington DC and around the world. 

From a leadership perspective we have to stand up for what we believe in. For me that is equality for all and one particular group is suffering we stand up to support them and right now that is the African American population in this country. My heart was shattered hearing of the news of George Floyd and many others before him. I ran down to the White House one morning this week and saw all of the signs the protesters hung up. It was profound. Change is necessary and has been for a long time.

What can we as allies and leaders do to support this change?

• We must speak our voice - the African American community as well as those who support them must speak up at this time. That could be in the forum of holding dialogues with your employees to see how this feels for them. It could be putting out audios, videos, emails or newsletter blasts letting your organization know where it stands on this topic. It could be holding discussions with members of your African American community to see what is going on for them and what can be done about it. But most importantly we have to let people be heard, respect their voices and speak our truth back to them to show our support and/or learn about their experiences.
• Stand up for those who may be facing injustice and/or bias - as allies we can speak up for and show our support for members of the African American community. This could include mentoring them, sponsoring them, giving them opportunities for leadership and/or opportunities to learn, grow, and develop. Giving a hand, providing support, and offering help to the community can be a great way to shift things in society.
• Look at our own thoughts and feelings around this topic - so much bias is unconscious. In fact the data shows that 90%of what we do on a bias level is unconscious. Therefore having discussions with those we trust to enlighten ourselves on our perspectives, doing some self-reflection (whether that is thinking about it or journaling) and opening up thinking about actions we have done in the past and how that might have impacted others is important. Change starts from within, but we need to know what our baseline is.

So much can be said around this topic but for now I am searching for my own truth, trying to listen and hear others perspectives, and mainly open up to being a change agent as we all work on a better society for everyone.

As many of us have had a lot of time at home we have had a lot of time to reflect? What is important? Are we on the right track? What path do we want to be on during this time and as we think about the future? As a result what changes do we need to make?

As I have reflected during this time I am very proud to feel like I have been developing the skills and tools necessary to put myself on the path of wisdom for a while now. While it was a hard journey sometimes (self-awareness, and breaking down old habit patterns) I discovered that I truly value going deep within and being deeply present. During this time I sat down and watched "The Last Dance," which documented Michael Jordan's last national basketball championship with the Chicago Bulls. In the last episode one of commentators said that what set Michael apart was that he lived in the present moment. Michael had said why would I worry about a shot I have not yet taken? 

Being in the now is where the brilliance is. As a leader, as a parent, as a person the present is the only place we are able to be and develop and take action from. When our mind is wandering from the past to the future (as it is wired to do) we miss the only place we can truly be happy and/or make change in our lives.

How can you get present and access your own brilliance within? Whether you have extra time right now or are busier than ever, make some space to reflect and be in the moment. There are tons of great apps which help you to become mindful and/or I have started a YouTube page with a lot of short Mindfulness Moments. Check it out here: ​https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCxG1Gqr9xUMiPgF2t6pNyRQ?view_as=subscriber

With the Covid pandemic in place since mid-March here on the East Coast of the US I know that I was living in a day by day mode. I was looking at things in a very short term way and not focusing on the future because it was too hard. Being in the present, while scary and very different than how I used to live, was a survival mechanism. Now, however, even though the Shelter in Place has gotten extended here in Washington DC until June 8 I am planning for the future.

As leaders while we have to look at the short term tactical to get things done, we also have to be planning for the future, shaping the vision, and bringing people along with you. Innovation and creativity may be sprouting right now as planning for the future is requiring new ways of operating. Some of the current ways of operating such as working from home sometimes may become a part of the future, getting comfortable with more and more use of technology will continue, as perhaps might the strengthened relationships coming out of this time together. 

But what will be needed for the future? How can you get innovative now on who your new customer base may be, what their needs may become, and what will be important to them? While none of have all of the answers many of us are now attempting to get educated on the new possible ways to look at the world. Stay intellectually curious. Get out (virtually) and talk to different people in your network to get different perspectives. Listen to Ted Talks and read the news (in moderation so don't get too down) but find ways to open up your curiosity muscle, get new perspectives, new inputs, and talk to different people. By doing so you can begin to see new patterns, new thought processes, as well as new data emerging. That can lead to the next innovation, the next brilliant idea, or the next collaboration. 

How can you broaden your scope? What new things can you learn about today? What can you get curious about which can help you think through what to do, be, or create in the future?

With the end in sight for many of us of Shelter in Place and a return to moving again in the world, although in a very limited way, it feels like life is moving forward again. With leaders right now they are working towards what a new normal will look like, planning for the transition, but also still working through this neutral zone. 

What are you hoping to return to? What does the new normal look like for you? I know for me as a leadership coach and trainer in-person training had come to a standstill. All were cancelled from the middle of March through at least the end of May with many postponing or cancelling all together. Coaching work was sustainable because most of it was virtual anyways, but in the meantime we got re-tooled onto virtual platforms and I finally conducted a three day virtual training class last week. And now clients are tiptoeing back asking for virtual delivery of training.

While this neutral zone caused a lot of fear and anxiety, planning for the future was beneficial. Getting retrained and retooled was helpful and being ready when clients returned was also essential. What can you be doing right now to prepare for the return to movement? What do you need to put into place to remain healthy while going back in some ways to bits of your life pre-Covid? 

Planning is going to be essential so that when things do start moving you are ready to move forward. What actions do you need to begin to take today?

Thriving? I know that sounds immature or naive or lacking in deep understanding of the world right now during Covid-19, but in truth even during a pandemic we can thrive.  Emotionally, spiritually, physically we can thrive, but now also trusting that even the current situation can ultimately be good for our growth and development.

While we are suffering perhaps in not being in physical proximity to those who we love, having health issues or fearful of our financial future, there are many wonderful things coming out of this pandemic, which we may never have paid attention to otherwise. 

1. Re-prioritizing what is truly important - family time. Time spent speaking to and being creative in how we keep in touch with family and friends is critical. Whether you are at home with your family and enjoying cooking, playing games, cleaning the house or getting creative together or you are creatively finding ways to keep in touch with family and friends use this time to go deeper in your relationships. Spend time really getting to know what is in the hearts and minds of your children or spouse, dig deeper in yourself and find creative projects to do with one another, but mostly show each other how much you love each other. Relationships are primary and in this time of forced togetherness use it wisely.
2. Spiritual growth - I have been spending a lot more time being mindful these days. Whether it is meditating myself, creating mindfulness practices for others, or leading mindfulness programming this is a time to go deeper in our internal world and bring some peace to ourselves. If you have a practice, go back into it and become disciplined about making it an integral part of your day. If you are new to it, find an app or an online group to guide you through it like Mindful Leader and begin to learn how to bring this practice into your life. There are so many benefits like stress reduction, increased productivity, enhanced well-being which are all needed right now.
3. Creativity - While we are all at home I know my creativity is itching to come out. I used to Ballroom Dance pre-Covid and I don't know when I will be able to get back to that, but now I am leaning into writing, painting, gardening, and cooking. All of these things are helping me to unlearn my need for control and allowing me to see the deep wisdom in the windy path. For sometimes the windy path can get you to where you needed to go much more confidently than if you charged ahead in one particular way. This can be the case in your leadership journey as well. Brainstorm new possibilities, let the creative juices fly. For how we get out of this Covid situation health wise and business wise will require a lot of creativity.
4. Financial responsibility - while some of you are in stable jobs even during this crisis, others are being deeply impacted by the financial crisis of this. Learn to tighten up your belts. What things can you eliminate from your budget. What areas do you need to tighten? Where do you need to spend to invest in your future or growth right now? Where can you get help if you need it? Listen to financial experts and learn what you need to do right now to make your financial future thrive.

There are ways to come out of this situation better off than you left it. I know there is a lot of destruction, pain, health suffering, and financial concerns, but focus on what you can control. Get creative about how you do and invest this time wisely in developing yourself, your families, and strengthening your relationships.