Upliving Remotely: The consistent application of routines and skills that take you from surviving remotely, to thriving remotely.

Over the past year I have studied, tested, hypothesized and hypothesized what I needed to thrive remotely. Through journaling, reflecting and sourcing great coffee, I have come to understand a few small pieces to the puzzle of how we can uplive in our remote settings.

With the tectonic shift of so many industries moving more and more remote due to the pandemic, we are now able to live like never before in human history.

While that can come with its challenges, I believe with clear and consistent routines, skills, and actions, upliving in this new way of being is within reach for all of us.

With this opportunity to uplive like never before, the responsibility lies with us to find ways to make that a reality which is why I’ve put together 10 ways you can start upliving from your remote setting this week.

[caption id="attachment_24596" align="aligncenter" width="620"] Photo by Tijana Drndarski on Unsplash[/caption]

1. Be Still

Be still, for the way is not found but gifted.

While choppy water can make for a great tourist attraction, calm, still water serves as a resting place for birds to swim over, people to gather around, and creatures to live under. There is something to be said about being still or having a moment of stillness each day. Being still allows the thoughts of the day to pour over us and for ideation and creativity to flow through us — all key elements to upliving remotely.

2. Choose Acceptance

Great freedom reaches into our heart from our mind once we accept what is and what is not.

The pandemic has taught us what we can and cannot control. As frustrating as that can be at times, acceptance can allow peace to flow into our hearts and minds which spills over into how we execute our work. Choosing to accept some things while choosing to challenge others is a choice that is needed to be made daily. Recognizing which is a skill that will need to be exercised daily to uplive remotely.

3. Find Your Ying and Yang

To truly rest, one must seek the balance of peace between the forces of the day.

Balancing between the negative and positive forces that surround our days (even beyond a pandemic) is critical to remaining stable, poised and able to persevere through the demands of the day. No day is easy, but recognizing the forces around us that are competing for our focus, attention, gratitude, and happiness is a key part of upliving remotely. Drawing closer to the forces for good will allow us to pull away from the forces for bad.

4. Foster Deep Gratitude

Deep gratitude comes to those who intentionally look for it.

We can all be grateful for something each day and that is wonderful. However, if you truly want to uplive remotely, a regular part of your life should be focused on surfacing moments of deep gratitude each day. Just like deep thinking or deep writing, deep gratitude is a place the heart and mind can escape to where they feel completely full. Even if this is for a moment, it can spring you forward as you approach the demands and responsibilities of the day, week and month.

5. Invest Differently

Truly being different is not about ordering pineapple on your pizza, it’s about changing what the pizza is made of.

I am a big believer in doing things differently for many reasons. Whether it's changing how we invest our time, money, energy, etc. Upliving remotely is a science experiment in itself. Taking stock of what we have and where we are investing while being open minded to the new possibilities that exist is a key ingredient to upliving remotely. With so much disruption and vulnerability in many markets, we can choose to run to fear or to new opportunities. The choice is up to each of us.

6. Seek New Content

Do something no one else is doing, daily.

I live in Canada and right now, when I google the housing market, I only seem to be getting one side of the conversation. All the content I am reading is telling me to buy, buy, buy. But there has to be alternative views somewhere, right? Upliving is about being mindful of our thoughts and personal biases and if we stay in our own remote echo chamber, we tend to grow less than if we step outside of that chamber even if it is for a moment. Seeking out new and alternative content makes us more adaptable, well-rounded and informed.

7. Focus Inward

Your heart is your greatest asset. Protect it at all costs.

Upliving isn’t possible if your heart is guarded, jaded, closed or broken. Focus on healing the heart and protecting the heart from personal attacks and slighted comments in your remote environment is huge. Having a short memory can also help. We must deflect as many spears as possible and for the ones that do hit us where it hurts, we need to remove them and patch ourselves up. Finding quiet time each week to heal, nurture and strengthen the heart will only amplify our ability to uplive remotely.

8. Continue Creating Structure

Structure creates freedom. — Matthew McConaughey

This has never been more true. We all want freedom, whether it's freedom to travel without consequence or just to walk around without a mask. However, we need structure now to create freedom later. On a remote working scale, we must stay focused and structured in our work routines so that we can dance in the freedom that comes from a good day’s worth of work. Structure and freedom have a symbiotic relationship that we need to respect and mold to our liking.

9. Think Macro, Act Micro

Days are formed or broken based on decisions made on the fringes of our lives.

As we think beyond COVID-19, what we do now; I believe, will amplify who we are and what we do after the pandemic is over. Deciding to take action to uplive each day is micro but we know from Darren Hardy's “The Compound Effect” that micro influences our macro over time. Even the smallest actions taken daily can produce a lifetime of magnificent results.

10. Capture Magnificent Moments

A moment, however big or small, needs to be captured not just in the mind but in the heart as well.

Upliving remotely requires both confidence and patience. In building both of these for the long haul, we need to find unique ways to celebrate milestones and monumental moments in our remote settings. Doing this only fuels our confidence and patience to continue to persevere in our days and weeks. Track, celebrate, and rejoice in the weekly wins. This is an integral part of upliving remotely.

Conclusion

At the end of the day, it’s up to each of us to seek out strategies and ways we can uplive, especially when it comes to our individual remote settings.

Test, pilot, explore, create and listen to what works for you. Your industry, family and future self will all thank you for it.

If you are working remotely, sign up below to get put on the book launch list for my upcoming book titled, “How To Thrive In Remote Working Environments”.

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