“Without the mud we cannot grow lotus flowers. So the mud is useful somehow.”
-Thich Naht Han
In the wake of the current pandemic, there have been seemingly-endless predicatory entreaties directed to the American public, across social media platforms, and in some traditional media, to “make the best” of being home or to “work on that dream” one has long deferred. I agree with the approach, in the long-term. But, what should one do to survive now, here in the short-term? How does one generate the income they need to cover monthly bills and feed themselves in THIS moment?
Now is the time to shift.
By shifting I mean: Determine how your current skills are useful to work that is already available. To enhance your offerings, you can establish through your mobile service a phone line dedicated solely to work. (I have researched it recently; a no-frills second line costs under $20.00 a month with most of the big carriers.) Further, you can offer to purchase a VPN for added security over your home internet connection. The idea is to not panic rather to scramble back on to your feet, steady yourself, and then adjust. Write out what are –or were– your daily tasks. Then write out what actual effort is required to accomplish those tasks. Using the resources that you currently have, and those that you can reasonably acquire, shift. Become a person who can work effectively from anywhere. Life has given you lemons so make lemonade.
This urging does not rain down from an ivory tower. In fact, it proceeds from a person who unexpectedly lost his job in 2013, and was deeply mired in debt. Initially, I made the regrettable decision to blast my resume to as many job openings as I thought were at least a decent match. The result was disastrous! Eventually, I settled into the condition in which I found myself and shifted. To borrow from Thich Nhat Hanh’s teaching on how to relax, I first had to stop (i.e., thinking, wondering, and worrying) and “come home to the present moment where life [was] available.” I had to be still, and allow my mind to clear. I then changed how I viewed my situation. The shift went as follows: “What are my most useful skills, and where can I apply them, soon?” Finally the work came, in fits and starts, but I had paid work. I had shifted away from what I thought life should be and accepted it as it was at that moment.
Shift now to survive, and then later, as soon as you have your feet firmly under you, move your dreams closer to the top of your list of priorities and flourish, like a lotus.
