5 Ways To Cope With The Coronavirus Quarantine
As we enter into the second full week of remote work, we would like to provide some encouragement as well as a few helpful resources as you get adjusted to a “new normal” for at least the near future. While we are all going through this pandemic crisis together and responding as best we can to the onslaught of constant information, we believe it’s helpful to revisit some guiding principles with respect to both investments and life.
Stay Level Headed
First and foremost, don’t overreact. We are all going through this together and just like a healthy body, healthy economies recover. Advisors are in a unique and difficult situation, taking the brunt of client interaction. And many of us have may not have had much practice dealing with a major crisis and serving as a counsellor in addition to our role as advisor. Even those of us who went through the 2008 financial crisis are likely out of practice when it comes to crisis management. Keep in mind that many clients need a sounding board during this time and listening with empathy can go a long way. Clients are looking to advisors for calm financial leadership and to provide perspective. How we communicate and encourage our clients can result in taking client relationships to much deeper levels once we emerge from this crisis.
Focus On Things Above
Our mind is our most powerful resource for dealing with these trying times. What we focus on and feed it with will directly affect our ability to cope with the onslaught of negative news. It’s particularly important for advisors who are having difficult conversations and trying to stay on top of the financial market news to take time to consider all of the things that you have to be thankful for and intentionally limit your daily exposure to financial media. Make a list and count your blessings. Use gratitude as a means to fight negativity. Schedule an appointment with yourself to get off screens, out of your head and into God’s word.
Do Not Forsake Your Own Assembling Together… Encourage One Another Daily
As we adjust to a new work environment, meaning home for many of us, it’s important to stay connected to avoid feelings of isolation and to prioritize relationships. We consider it a blessing to live in a time where technology provides us the ability to easily communicate with friends and loved ones. Take this time to reach out to others, particularly those you know of who may be particularly isolated. Many of us have clients that are not familiar with some of the tools that make this possible, like Zoom, which can provide an opportunity for you to show them how you can communicate with them and they can communicate with their friends and family.
A God Provided Reallocation of Your Life
One of the most cited cultural complaints today is how busy we all are. Consider it a gift to be forced to slow down and use our time to think about what your priorities are. Remember those resolutions you may have made at the first of the year? Perhaps this is a “do-over” including extra time to turn those resolutions into habits.
They Will Know You Are My Disciples By The Love You Have For One Another
Take the opportunity to focus on healthy relationships within your own family. Many of us suddenly have our entire family together under one roof. What a great opportunity to take advantage of, but also a time to practice patience and grace towards one another. As advisors, keep in mind that you may have clients whose family dynamics were already in a state of crisis even before they had quarantine together. There are many resources available and we will be continually updating our own resources page with additional biblically based options as we find them.
I’ll close with a quote from an essay by C.S. Lewis’ called, On Living in the Atomic Age, with some obvious similarities to a pandemic and wise advice:
“The first action to be taken is to pull ourselves together. If we are going to be destroyed by an atomic bomb, let that bomb, when it comes, find us doing sensible and human things -- praying, working, teaching, reading, listening to music, bathing the children, playing tennis, chatting to our friends over a pint and a game of darts -- not huddled together like frightened sheep and thinking about bombs.”
If you're a solo advisor out there who needs a sounding board to talk to about guiding your clients through this crisis and managing your own practice, we'd love to connect with you.
EverSource Wealth Advisors© empowers independent financial advisors to realize their aspirations for Kingdom impact in the lives of their clients. The EverSource Total Support SystemSM provides advisors full back office support in the areas of technology, investment management, operations, compliance and client services. Both our culture and technology platform are specifically designed to incorporate biblical principles into the financial planning and investment management process. As part of a like-minded community, with freedom to focus on what matters most, EverSource enables faith driven independent advisors and their clients to “Smile at the Future.” To learn more about joining the EverSource platform, schedule a call today: