Planning in a Pandemic
Image by Pete Linforth from Pixabay
So, your 20s are passing by in the middle of a worldwide pandemic?
The unexpected twists and turns of our very own roaring 20s have seemingly got us all in a stalemate. Being in my early(-ish) twenties, I was finally embarking on my very own life journey. Then I found myself in a place with doors closing all around me rather than opening. This can be very overwhelming for all young people out there. How do we plan? What do we plan?
But after a few months, I realized that this could be a great time to look inside. Take a moment to step back and investigate.
Since I was 16, this is the first time I am not working full-time. This shocked me to my core, and I didn’t really know what to do now. It’s a weird feeling not having a 9 to 5 job. Then I realized that there are things I’m very passionate about, but never had the time for. For example, self-assessment and becoming more conscious and self-aware.
I’m sure I’m not the only one, but I never actually knew what I wanted to do with my life career-wise. I started to see opportunities I never had the time to examine, career passions I never thought were for me. I started looking into all the economic changes that are soon to come or are already here. I looked into all dying and prospering professions, to see my odds in the forthcoming future.
Planning in these uncertain times may seem impossible, but hear me out.
Planning in this pandemic is twofold:
1. You must plan for the near future. Meaning that you absolutely need to secure your physical needs. You need to secure food and housing. That’s it. For now. And for now, it’s enough. Don’t expect too much from yourself. This pandemic has put everyone in a difficult place, and it’s hard for us all emotionally also. Secure everything that’s necessary, and only spend on that. After that, SET ASIDE the rest. Knowing that you have a little something to fall back to if anything becomes worse will give you some comfort
2. Then you take your free time to plan your life after the pandemic. Some of you are in school. Some of you dropped out because of the pandemic. Some of you have a job, and maybe you are in between jobs right now or working from home. Whatever the case, you either had a plan for your future, or you were still unsure before the pandemic (like I was).
- Firstly, take the time to self-assess. Know your strengths, your weaknesses, your hobbies, passions, and your talents. Calculate your basic needs, and things you need to achieve to reach your goal (do you need to make more money? Do you want more free time? Do you want to travel? etc.)
- Research. Not a lot of people know what is to come. But if you ask the right people or search in the right places, there is a small idea of what you can expect. A lot of occupations are currently dying, some because of the pandemic. These are not good investments. Some new professions are coming to the surface, and some already known jobs are widening with more and more opportunities. A lot of professions are intertwining, like creative and scientific jobs for example. A lot of doors closed, but if you want to be smart, look one step ahead, and try to calculate what you can expect.
- BE PROACTIVE. Don’t wait for all this to be over to take action. I know there are almost no job openings and CEOs are not exactly looking to interview people, but think outside the box for this one. Reach out to people in the fields that are surfacing or growing. Let them know you. Ask around in a company you might like. Ask them what you need to do to be an above-average candidate, and do it. Or plan it. Anything you can do to be proactive!
So to summarise: find yourself in your everyday life, centralize yourself spiritually, emotionally. Be productive. Self-assess. Secure yourself for anything. Research. And be proactive.
And always remember: this is a scary time in history. It’s okay to have more lazy days than usual. Take more time to care for your emotional needs, and keep your loved ones close. Don’t do more than is necessary and never do more than you can. This is not a good time to push yourself past your limits, and it is not the time to work yourself senseless.
And if all else fails, we have TikTok to fall back on.
Russell Ridgeway is a creative copywriter. He specializes in technology, fashion, and business. His creative writing can be found at www.neildylan.com. Contact him for all of your writing needs at russell@neildylan.com.