Unlock the lockdown. It has been the slogan of many manifestations the last weeks, but now it can be an adage of all of us. Several countries are unlocking the lockdown, but where do you go from here?

Even though the lockdown will be unlocked little by little, Covid-19 will be around for a little bit longer as well. It will reshape our world and our mind, if it has not been doing that before. For the good and the bad. Therefore, in next blog post I will take you along some aspect that can change and must change in our new post-Corona world. If we should never let a good crisis go to waste, let’s use Covid-19 to dive into a whole new world.

Today, I’ll start with the beginning: where do you go from here? How do you get started and how do you find direction again?

Where to go from here?

Before starting anywhere, picking up your own life again, or starting a whole new road, ask yourself certain questions. Answer them genuinely, simply by sitting in silence with yourself, and listening to your inner voice, not the one of society, neither of your friends or parents, nor of other influential figures around you.

Evaluate your norms and values, where do you want to stand for? What and who does really matter to you? What kind of employee, partner, parent, friend, colleague, and just human being do you want to be within your possibilities? How do you want to be remembered? What gives you joy and meaning in your life, and how do you give joy and meaning to others’ lives?

If the time in isolation hasn’t brought you there yet, now is the time to make an assessment of your needs vs your wants, your possibilities vs your opportunities, your desires vs your limits, your energy sources vs your energy takers.

Take the time to answer these questions honestly, there is no pressure, no time pressure, no social pressure. Jot some key words down in a notebook, on your phone, a little piece of paper, whatever is most convenient to you.

This will become your inner compass. Whenever you get lost, whenever you don’t know which decision to take, open up your compass, it will open up your heart and mind and let you make the right choice. There you will go from here.

How to get started?

Now you have found your direction, how do you get started? No single mountain has been climbed in one single step; no single distance has been covered in one single move. So, take your time. Create your own timeline, including the immediate, the middle and the long term.

Keep your vision clear, your inner compass, but know the world will change, and so will you once you’re on track. So, just start walking. Take the first step, it doesn’t have to be a giant leap, just a little step, to start the movement.

Once you start moving, you’ll start gaining thrust in your own abilities, you’ll start gaining motivation, experience, knowledge and insights. Once you’ve taken the first step, you have done the greatest effort. Therefore, make it small and possible, within your reach, and remember no matter how small that step is, it is more than staying stuck at ‘start’.

How to keep going?

Now you’re on the road, how do you keep going? Even though you jotted down your own timeline, it is important to live and honour the present moment. Nobody walks on a mountain keeping watching the steep road up to the top, which seems to be out of reach. It demotivates. Once you have set your goals and your direction to get there, turn back to the now. Be conscience of the steps you take, honour every small victory, every small step on the path, they keep you motivated. Enjoy being where you are, absorb the present moment and appreciate the details of the now.

Don’t reach for the pile, reach for the separated pieces, for they will lead you to the pile. Like making a puzzle you’ll start with putting the most obvious pieces first, the outer lines, the remarkable ones. You might not have the entire picture figured out, but have thrust you’ll find the fitting pieces once you get started.

As long as you have your vision and direction clear, start drawing the lines, the rest will get its meaning on the way. You might not know the precise outcome yet, and you might never will, but start going and you’ll get there; as long as you stay going.

Therefore, don’t allow setbacks to set you back. Rely on your inner compass. Find meaning in the little things on the road, the passengers, the travel companions, the visitors, the spectators, the scenery, or the butterfly that flies up in front of your eyes. They all contribute to your path, to your learning curve; and if they don’t, walk away, that too was a lesson.

 How to succeed?

Now you know where you want to go, you know how to get started and to keep on going. The next question will be: how will you succeed on your mission?

First of all, live in the now, live up to your values and vision, but take regular breaks to re-asses. Re-asses your direction, does it still bring you closer to your goals? Re-asses your pathway, does it still align with your values and vision; is it the way that gives you the most energy, fulfilment and meaning on the long term?

Re-asses your journey, is it sustainable for yourself, for the planet and for the people around you? If a multitude of people would take the exact same path as you, would it harm the planet, the people around you or even yourself? If you would live the exact same life as today every single day for decades, would it be really beneficial for yourself? Would it exhaust you physically, emotionally, and/or financially? Would it harm your beloved ones?

These questions should allow you to tweak your pathway, and if needed to even adapt your goal or vision. Something has to keep the spark alive to keep the fire burning, if it doesn’t, it might not be your fire. If the road is exhausting and not bringing you any close, it might not be yours. If the goal keeps to be out of reach, no matter how hard you tried, it might not be yours.

It is not a failure to take a break and rest when you get tiered, it does not mean you have to quit straight away. With renewed energy, wisdom and motivation you might be able to reach your goal on a more adequate way than you had in mind initially. Or even to reach for another goal.

It is not a failure to take a break and re-assess before you keep on going stubbornly towards a goal you have set yourself regardless what life would come up with.

It is not a failure not continuing the road that brings you nowhere and taking another one, just because you said so. It is not a failure diverting the road at any point of your journey, just because you planned it this way.

It is not a failure not reaching your destiny; it is a failure not going on the road.

Every road will teach you something and get you somewhere; it might not be the destination you had in mind, but it might be your destination au fond.

In a nutshell, now we are unlocking the lockdown, unlock your own potential.

Be the truest version of yourself.

Determine your after-Covid direction, get on the road, and stay on the road. Regardless how fast, how far, and where you will go. Being on the road, is where it is all about. Being on your road, listening to your voice, regardless all voices around you.

This article is part of the series of Hope in Times of Corona. Read

1. how this times of self-isolation should not mean loneliness,
2. how you can contribute to this battle, 
3. how gratitude lights up the dark,  
4. how united we will stand strong
5. on the most util strategy in awake of a crisis 
6. how I got blown of my feet as well, but caught by many caring hands, 
7. how being calm can get us through the storm.
8. about Love in Times of Corona
9. how to discover your own talents 
10. why we need stories to hold on to 
11. how you can be creative and innovative.
12. how to spend your mot valuable assets in times of Corona.
13. how to listen to the sound of silence. 
14. How breate taking Corona really is.
15. discover the other freedoms Corona has shown us, 
16. about the new-born freedom Corona gave us.
17. about another way to exceed your personal bubble.
18. about the position of nature in this entire story
19. about nature bouncing back
20. about the crucial choice between resilience and resistance
21. about the game to play
22. about star gazing in dark times
23. About looking for Meaning
24. about what Easter and Corona have in Common
25. About the Shark and the Turtle
26. About the Irony of Distance
27. Why to Hold on
28. Fake News
29. about The Big Unknown we live at
30. about Feeling Alive
31. about what the Birthday of my nephew learned me about life 
32. About where we should go from here?
33. About the Great War and the Great Pandemic, and we should not forget
34. about history’s most important message, echoed by corona
35. How one country could rule them all
36. About how to prevent the next Green Pandemic 
37. about how we are experiencing a new episode of our history books
38. masks off, how a friend in need is a friend indeed
39. What’s Next. after we flattened the curve?
40. how will our personal story look like in a post-corona world?
41. why we should never let a good crisis go too waste.
42. How Spring can happen in Autumn

Or wait until tomorrow, when I’ll shine another light on yet another positive corner of this dark times.