WDYCT – What did you create today? As we move into April, with no real end of the global COVID-19 pandemic in sight, I’ve been thinking about this more and more. Is it possible to counteract destruction with creation?
COVID-19 Brings Destruction
There is no doubt that this virus brings destruction. It has killed tens of thousands of people across the world, destroying lives and families. It has destroyed the economy, along with it individual careers, and companies. It has wreaked havoc on global economies, and it has disrupted the ability for least fortunate among us to work and provide the basic necessities for their families.
This is truly a global traumatic event. Even if you are still working, you are isolated in your house, wondering about the health of the rest of your family and when you’ll be able to hang out with your friends again. You may also be home schooling your children at the same time you are trying to work from home.
Even the nature of work is changing. I’ve heard from many folks that instead of finding ways to collaborate online, the meeting schedule has ramped up to the point that they are working longer hours just attending meetings, with little time to reflect and think, required elements of a productive knowledge worker.
If you try to take in news to keep yourself and your family protected, it takes a lot of energy to evaluate the sources of news reports to root out speculation or straight up information from the important items. And too much news can just bring on fatigue or worse.
How much can we bear?
We Must Counterbalance Destruction with Creation
I believe there is a duality to everything in our world. And inherent in that duality is balance. So when things start tipping too far one way or the other, our worlds start going haywire.
If COVID-19 is a force of destruction that has made our world haywire, we need a force of creation to bring back some balance. There is not much we can do about a novel coronavirus besides protect ourselves and families from infection by staying home, wearing masks when we do need to be out, and washing our hands.
But we can put energy into creating. You create when you cook, when you write, when you make art, when you garden, even when you clean your personal spaces. If we can put more energy into creating for good than we do in following the destruction, perhaps we can shift the energy more towards balanced.
WDYCT?
My challenge to you is to create something, anything, every single day. Spend at least as much time creating as you do consuming information about COVID-19.
I’ll be asking on Twitter and in the groups I’m active with now. #WDYCT? Respond with whatever it is you’ve created! Tell the world about it, show us pictures and videos. Share other creations that inspire you or make you feel good.
Real Talk
We are globally in the middle of a pandemic, and who knows when we’ll be able to escape the shadow cast by this destructive virus. Let’s try to counter this destruction with creation.
WDYCT?
