How I’m finding back my Mojo

I’m visualizing the summer, and the break that comes with it before me. After some hectic months of teaching, consultation with students on their re-assessment projects and the constantly enlisting of “to-do” check lists of the thousands of activities that I have to get done before my summer starts and a cruel flu that took my body and soul literally over, I can say…

I’m thinking of new beginnings a new way to regenerate positive energies…

Life has been tough the last couple of weeks at the Faculty. Since we are a new faculty only operating for just two years, “changes” are the status quo. You have to be a real flexible dragon in order to survive. Sociologist Zigmunt Bauman‘s coined statement: “living in times of uncertainty” applies to these last two years. Uncertainty teaches you to be flexible and you have to anticipate and leave perfectionism behind and start embracing robust planning & visioning and authentic teamwork.  A wise man once told me that this context values the strategy of Feed-forwarding, rather than the more common “after the facts” feed-backing. Don’t get me wrong feed-back is still one of the greatest tools for learning and working together towards great things. Anyways, to get to the point, operating in a sphere of constant uncertainties has a dark side too, it can generate stress that can have its consequences on everything you do. Stress can sometimes trigger a constant state of fear that can be demotivating and can even paralyze the creative process. It encourages a negative spiral of fear of failure and it sucks you up. You become half the shadow of the woman you really are. Oops, there goes my honest self!

So the questions are: How to not drown in all this work? in all these uncertainties? How to keep your groove shining, or as Austin Power calls it, how to get  your “mojo” back when it slips away (mojo= a slang concept used to describe self-confidence, self-esteem or in the case of Austin his sex-appeal) ?

You have to come with creative strategies to constantly get to that place in order for you to stand in the middle of the storm. Here everything is quiet and time stands still, you decide consciously to enter the transformation process

Here are some tips I will try in the coming days to get back my mojo. Mojo means to me, my creative and resilient spirit back, in terms of work–>to catalyze my PhD process

1. Embrace times of uncertainty. The learning curve is here very steep and it moves you forward if you keep the head cool and the heart full of positivism
2. Eat the ugly frogs first (things that have to be done), and then make room and time to play (the creating tasks)
3. Learn to plan realistically, don’t let unrealistic deadlines demotivate you
4. Write everyday, to stay in the rhythm of expressing and structuring ideas
5. Smile, put some music on and get in to the books and articles
6. Ask seniors for advice (look for mentors and coaches)
7. Don’t give up, it is a process. Don’t be hard to yourself, just be in the process…
8. Read a good book (not your usual PhD subject) and drink a cold beer in the weekends and spend time with your loved ones, and if you happen to have a bounty beach like I have: go for a swim (this is optional)
9. Run, dance, or do something sporty to get yourself out of your head. Produce some endorphin
10. Rest, sleep your needed 8 hours
11. Stay positive, visualize yourself positive
12. Eat healthy food
13. Be consciously aware that you can always reach your dreams, try each day to walk the small steps towards your goals

I’m getting back on track…