"You're so resilient" is something I have heard for most of my professional life and a quality that can be extremely useful in small business. I'm proud of my strengths and pleased to know that occasionally I inspire others with my stick- to itiveness. It's been a good quality to have during this pandemic so far, but can I let you in on a little secret? It's a bit exhausting. And I am not always very proud of myself since my resilience in business often comes at a cost to my personal life.
Covid-19 has changed a lot of things for a lot of people and I know that many of us are struggling finding the ways to navigate all of these changes and find our equilibrium. Prioritizing self care seems like a good investment and finding the the simple pleasures, the happy moments and the connections to others seems like a good direction, but if you still feel a bit untethered, maybe it's resilience work we need to be doing.
I read and article that said "to be more resilient in an crisis, focus on meaning not happiness" I know when people ask me for advice, I often say "focus on the why" This testimonial from a customer is a great example of my why - the meaning behind my business. I love making people happy!
"I think that Julie is the real magic of Logan and Finley. Just having the perfect inventory is not nearly enough. What makes the shopping experience so special is having someone who understands ones individual tastes and/or needs. I am not usually one who enjoys shopping for clothes. When I walk into a store I sort of glaze over, totally overwhelmed, and not knowing where to start.
At Logan and Finley this is not a problem. As soon as I’m through the door, Julie has a changing room set aside for me and she is filling it with things that she thinks I should try. Often I question her judgement when I look at things on the hanger but once I try them on, I know she was right. Instead of my normal problem of not finding anything that suits me, the problem is trying to decide what I should leave behind!
Since I live a long way from Toronto the travel restrictions have made it impossible to go to the store. Before this I had never tried to buy clothes online; I’ve always had to try them on first. This year I confidently purchased a new Logan and Finley summer wardrobe by phone (and online), with Julie’s help and I have really enjoyed every bit of it. The surprise boxes are a great addition to the offerings. I totally trusted Julie to choose things that I would love and she didn’t disappoint.
The non-clothing options are also chosen with the same care and respect. As I am not familiar with many of those types of things I again resorted to a Low-Waste Home Surprise Box and was amazed with all the wonderful things it contained. I was so thrilled, in fact, that l bought one for each of our daughters and one for a neighbour. They all had rave reviews.
Logan and Finley is not just a store, it is a complete shopping experience and one I am really grateful to have available to me."
"You have 0 kilometres left before you need to refuel" is the message my car told me one night this week. My personal tank was empty too and I was feeling nervous that my resilience felt like it was at an all time low right when I needed it the most and then a customer filled up my "tank" with this wonderfully kind review. It helped me to focus on what's important to me. Taking care of myself helps me to do better work. I'm no expert, but I know that we are going to be navigating this for a while and we need to be as equipped as possible to deal with what life throws our way and so I sought out a couple of articles from a couple of other business owners who I know prioritize health and wellness to hopefully inspire you to take good care of yourself and others in your life and build up your resilience. Whatever self-care looks like for you, however you fill up your tank, I hope you will take time to prioritize yourself.
Sarah Lang, a Toronto based professional coach had posted about Resilience and this paragraph really resonated with me:
"Resilience means moving through periods of stress and difficulty and emerging on the other side. The way we do this isn’t enduring or white-knuckling or “feeling okay” all the way through a hard time so that we can bounce back “to normal” when it’s over.
The beauty of resilience is that in moving through our struggle, we are transformed by it.
We allow the experience – in all it’s discomfort, confusion or pain – to shape us. So that we emerge on the other side, not only standing, but standing taller, with new insights, wisdom and compassion.
When we become more aware of our feelings, and less terrified of them, we are able to make this journey."
Check out the whole post here on the Sarah Lang Consulting website. And it's a part two on the topic of resilience. Here's the link to Everyday Resilience #1 and Sarah has a sign up to receive resilience tips and other great resources on her site as well.
Here's Sarah, looking radiant in one of the dresses she got in one of her Surprise clothing boxes and here's a link to why she likes to wear a dress.
"Love, love, love my new pieces from Logan and Finley.
