Since I wrote my column last week, a lot has changed here in Qatar – and around the world. The spread of the COVID-19 coronavirus has led to new measures to protect our population, including the closure of all schools, universities and academic institutions across the country. The overwhelming majority of events in the country have been cancelled. Upcoming speaking events, lectures, study-groups, and gatherings have also been postponed. It’s essentially our leaders pressing the ‘pause’ button in the interest of our health, hygiene and safety. While we are facing an unprecedented situation that’s affecting the entire world, it’s a quote from HE Sheikha Al Mayassa bint Hamad bin Khalifa al-Thani’s Instagram post this week that I remember as I write this column: “during a moment of crisis comes opportunity”
We live in an incredibly fast paced world, and are often told how to multitask and how to accomplish the things on our to-do lists on less sleep. A 24-hour news cycle, an expectation to respond to messages quickly, time stamps and ‘read receipts’ — it’s no wonder so many of us have a tough time pausing for a minute to reflect and regroup. In light of the current situation, and with the ‘pause’ button being firmly pressed to ensure we are kept safe and well, you could use this time wisely to ask yourself if change is required. Could you be eating healthier foods to strengthen your immune system? Could you better structure your day, with a clearer ‘start’ and ‘finish’ to ensure you are productive, rather than overworked and ineffective?
This ‘pause’ period is also a good opportunity to maximise our access to connectivity and explore new ways of learning, working, and teaching. The importance of pausing applies to many areas of life — we do not give ourselves time to stop or even pause. Pressing pause at the right time gives us a chance to re-evaluate our goals based on their current relevance and adjust our focus accordingly. As we are busy making our way towards a certain goal, our priorities may shift and our personal values change. Pausing is a chance to recollect yourself – to review where you’re headed and what you’re doing, looking at yourself from the outside and from within. But it is hard – and with several businesses, targets to meet, customers to serve, and projects to finalise — I myself am finding it very difficult to adapt to a situation that’s affecting every industry, from food, to packaging — the global supply chain is struggling, and in times of crisis it can be hard to think that this should be the time to slow down, rather than work even harder. This week I reached out to suppliers, partners, and even loyal customers to reassure them that my businesses should continue with a ‘business as usual’ approach despite the fresh challenges we are facing.
Being constantly busy and buried under problems, with new ones piling on top, sucks out our life forces and weighs us down. To keep living a full life, we know it’s crucial to replenish your internal energy reserves. Short pauses are the easiest way to do this. The longer you put off the rest you need, the more time you will need to restore. With the majority of social events and engagements cancelled, I’m approaching this period as a moment to be as productive as possible, and having to work harder at work, while hitting pause on other areas of my schedule in line with the government’s advice and policies in place.
The author is an expert in vegan wellbeing and health. Instagram handle: @Ghanim92
Ghanim al-Sulaiti
