Craig’s Corner April 2022
Spring Is Here – Are You Feeling Resilient?
Spring season is upon us! The longer days, the pleasant temperatures, the beautiful trees and flowers, the allergies … and, here in southwest Virginia, the occasional snow showers to remind us that we have no control over the seasons!
One aspect of spring that I’ve always appreciated is that the season brings new beginnings. The trees begin showing their leaves, and the flowers and plants are in bloom, signaling another year of life. In our localities, spring is also budget season; we are all developing and presenting budgets to our elected officials, which signifies a new year of operations for our counties, cities, and towns.
Even as spring brings new life and new energy, many of us find ourselves feeling tired – tired of challenging political issues, tired of dealing with all the aspects of COVID, and tired of the growing incivility in many of our communities. With all the hope that spring brings, what can we do to become “refreshed and recharged” so that we can take better care of ourselves, and also better serve our local governments?
I recently read an article by Wendy Gates Corbett, President of Signature Presentations, LLC, in Raleigh, NC, entitled “Three Strategies for Refueling Your Resilience Reserves.” In the article, Corbett notes that in a recent Harvard Business Review survey, 85% of respondents reported that their sense of well-being has been declining during this prolonged state of uncertainty in our lives.
To help improve our sense of well-being, and increase our “resilience reserves,” the author suggests three action steps:
1) Shift Your Scope. Corbett suggests that instead of focusing on longer term issues, we should instead shift our focus to items that are more near term. This doesn’t mean that shifting your scope to the nearer term results in ignoring the future; it simply means your time is spent more on attending to the “now” instead of the “later.”
2) Move from Encouraging to Expecting. Corbett notes that “One of the ways to relieve the strain caused by a persistent state of uncertainty is to refuel with a change of scenery and a change of pace.” As an example, Corbett shares that one company she works with has routinely encouraged employees to take time off. However, during the pandemic, most employees thought “I can’t go anywhere, so I might as well work.” As a result, the employees rarely refreshed or recharged (sound familiar?) To address this, the company’s management moved from encouraging time off to letting employees know that they are expected to use their paid time off. The company encouraged this action by providing information to employees on how to plan vacations and staycations, and also providing guides to area parks, greenways, and museums. Corbett’s point – “You don’t have to go far, but you do have to go!”
3) Get Moving. While vacations and time away from the office are good, Corbett notes that we all can benefit from simply taking a few minutes off during the workday. From the article – “Science shows that short breaks and bursts of movement improve concentration and productivity. I’m not talking about exercise, although exercise is a great way to get moving. I’m referring to a 5- or 10-minute walk in your neighborhood, or even a 1-minute stretch break.”
If you’re like me, our daily routines have changed a great deal in the last two years. The actions we implemented to cope with the pandemic, along with the life events that are a constant for all of us, have left many of us running low on resilience, and looking for ways to refresh and recharge. I hope that one of the strategies mentioned above will help you in recharging your resilience, and that you find opportunities to get out and enjoy the beautiful Virginia spring days!
Don’t forget to mark your calendars for the VLGMA summer conference in Virginia Beach, to be held June 8 through 10. The conference committee is diligently working to provide us with sessions that will encourage us, help rebuild our resilience reserves, and provide us with great continuing education opportunities. I hope that you will join us for a few days of learning, networking, and recharging – see you in June!
Please join me in welcoming our newest members - Daniel Barfield, Deputy Director of IT, Office of the Attorney General; Michael Morris, Deputy County Administrator, County of Stafford and Sarah Puckett, Assistant County Administrator, County of Prince Edward.
Happy Spring to you and yours,
Craig