A personal anecdote on struggling, coping and championing through the pandemic
By Karishma Chawla Chhabria
It is truly said, “Necessity is the mother of Invention”. The pandemic got us to a complete halt and pause. It made us pose questions to everything we have been believing, considering normal. And just like everyone else, it put me in a state of limbo too. I have been working as a Training consultant for over 18 years. The only way I knew how to do this was by being present in a room full of people.
The new normal made me question, worry and speculate about my profession and my career. And so, the first few weeks were spent in depression, anxiety and a lot of self-doubts.
Thankfully my ‘resilient muscle’ was stronger than any of the above-mentioned emotions. It was time to rediscover my being and my doing. I have come to realise the key to any kind of change seems to get heavier if we keep thinking about it. So, I got up from my slumber and went back to a very old habit – journaling, and began to write -
Emotions that were bringing me down
A pros v/s cons list of the current situation
List of skills I was already equipped with
List of skills that I wasn’t equipped with (and this list was long)
Action Points – week by week
Developed a daily routine (which included workouts at home and curating a small home gym)
Take up spontaneous ideas and not worry about whether they will work or not
I pretty much went through my notes every week on a Saturday, improvised and made new goals. The ticking off the items from the list of to-dos was oddly satisfying and fulfilling. It made me want to do more and didn’t give me time to get bored or lost. I truly did get on a journey to rediscovery and I’m still on it. A lot of new avenues opened up for me, along with bringing in international clients owing to the new virtual landscape. I am glad to have had the awareness to act and explore.
One key piece of heartfelt advice for when YOU take up that journey:
Other people’s journey will not bother you; you won’t have time to judge yourself or others, and you will get better each day.
If necessity is the mother of invention, know that Resilience is the father to Rediscovery!
Karishma Chawla Chhabria is a training professional with over 18 years of experience and an international public speaker. She is the Director of – Get Skilled Training Solutions & Get Crowned Pageant Coaching academy. She is a model and a writer by passion.
