Priorities in turbulent times Augustinus Ngombe
Times such as this are draining as they bring instability in our emotions.
But I am reminded by Robin Sharma that “worry drains the mind of its power and, sooner or later, it injures the soul.” If this is the case then setting priorities is not a choice but a must.
How we set up these good choices and how we would know if they are the right choices is our challenge. Thus, it requires of us to gain knowledge and be enlightened to be able to do so.
I said earlier that priority setting can’t be a choice but a must for the reasons which will be briefly discussed now. We are at a point where uncertainties keep mounting. It is as if we are moving through a dark room to cross over to the other side.
We do not see clearly but we have to rely on our sense of balance, touch and hearing to enable us to move forward until we are on the safer side.
As we move, we make choices of what sense to use at a particular time. There are so many options to take now – those of information, emotions, activities to do at home, etc. So far media have taken a journey of releasing mass information to the public.
Because we all want to be free from
Covid-19, we are desperate about using any means available to prevent its prevalence on us. The question is, is everything said and written true, in as much as those with charitable hearts want to give directives and guidelines to assist in preventing the spread of the virus.
The chance takers are also doing the same for their own benefit. Therefore, we need to set priorities. We begin with filtering our thoughts, so that only a positive outlook is maintained and we do away with the negative ones.
We can as well choose to be calm in the situation instead of being fearful. When we are calm, we carefully think through our actions before doing.
Out of the choices of sleeping and watching TV, we can choose to spend time nurturing the skills in our specific areas
of gifting and expertise. It is difficult to have time to sit and pray together, share words of encouragement or bond as a family during the normal working time as we come home exhausted. But now, we have time to do all these. But guess what, it doesn’t just come easily, it requires of us to prioritize doing this.
On the other hand, the normal precautions of preventing the spread of Covid-19 have to be considered. Thus, get the reliable sources from which your information can be extracted. The naysayers may spread the false information which leads to overspending as they keep telling us about some unnecessary stuff to buy – anxious and misguided actions. We should continue to wash our hands and use disinfectants. Let us keep to basics as per instruction of the WHO.
We should also not shy away from revisiting the WHO website for verification and keep oneself abreast of the development.
If we do this, it will help us maintain safety and be effective in our day-to-day operations. Choices are very important in these crucial times. It hurts so much that we cannot do so much we usually do but I dare you to not lose hope and not see this situation as an end to itself. Let me conclude with a quote from Martin Luther King Jnr: “Only in the darkness can you see the stars.” Prepare yourself, come out of this situation victorious and the better version of yourself. I sign out, and take a good care of yourself.