In many parts of the world, post-pandemic life is emerging and it looks a lot like the old one (except with remote working being more acceptable).

People have settled back into work, they’re shopping again in markets, and even enjoying days out with friends and family (albeit with face-masks still as the fashion du jour). 

But underneath it all, several of us may be struggling to get to grips with the challenges and changes that resulted from the COVID-19 pandemic.

Whether you’re adjusting to job loss, business failure, new routines, illness or other issues brought on by the virus, there’s absolutely no shame in admitting you’re having difficulty recalibrating your post-pandemic lifestyle.

Still, it can be hard to share your struggles, even with loved ones, when you see everyone around you appearing to be moving on or you suspect that they’re all dealing with their “own stuff”.

If you’re feeling particularly stressed or anxious, it may be that you would benefit from talking to a therapist.

But if what you want is to reconnect with yourself and start identifying a path out of a life that feels like it’s either stagnant or ever-shifting, then this could be a good time to sit down with a life coach.

Moving past the ‘mind fog’

A life coach can help you achieve clarity around what your next steps should be.

For many of us right now, the problem is that we’re engulfed with ‘mind fog’.

Weeks and months spent juggling housework, office work, schoolwork support, and more, scrupulously following virus news and information updates, connecting on zoom with everyone we ever met in our lives, and hanging out within the four same walls for months on end, has played havoc with our brain health.

Our minds need regular release from feelings of anxiety and other psychological stressors. They need fresh air and new environments just as our bodies do. And the result for many of us has been exhaustion, cloudy thinking and a lack of concentration.

A good life coach will work with you to design the tools you need to move beyond fuzzy thinking and feeling stuck. They’ll help you to gain clear and new perspectives on your challenges, which in turn will only improve your decision-making skills.

Identifying the goals that matter now

Achieving the above will lead you to identify the goals that matter most to you right now. The specific vision you have for your life may have got lost or even changed due to the pandemic effect.

Perhaps you were building a small business, planning on changing career or leaving a full-time position to start life as a solopreneur. Life under lockdown might have accelerated this process or left you worrying whether now is the time to make a great leap.

Of course, your goals may have nothing to do with employment. It may be that you want to tackle your health and fitness issues or become a more confident, creative individual.

The point is, that whatever your goals are, a good life coach can help you define them clearly and set priorities. They can also guide you through moments of tough transition so that you feel excited about the future rather than scared to move forward.

Support and accountability

Finally, a great reason for working with a life coach right now is that they can do the one thing that many others around you might not be in a position to do: They can support you.

Few of us have really processed all that we’ve gone through this last year and many of us are not ready to face it. Because of that we may not be available to truly hear the challenges our loved ones are facing or support them in creating positive action.

But life coaches can. That’s one of their biggest benefits.

They listen, they hear and they reflect back to us what we say so that we can learn more about ourselves and our ambitions.  

They’re a source of support, encouragement and equally, if not more, important – accountability.

A good coach will have helped you clear the brain fog, find your purpose and set your goals, and they are not going to sit by and watch you bail at the last moment.

Rather, they’re going to help you stay focused so that not only do you achieve your great ambition, but you recognise that even in the age of COVID-19 or any other pandemic, you now know you can pick yourself up, move your life forward and create your own successful “new normal”.

Photo: @rethaferguson