Stop. Look. Listen. Prepare and Go.

Time can be a strange thing. We consciously know that it doesn’t speed up or slow down. It’s constant, consistent and never ending. Yet period of time can feel stretched, compressed, horrendously long and suddenly disappear in the blink-of-an-eye.

Starting a new role, or experiencing any significant change, can dilate, squash or generally distort a sense of time. It can also make it difficult to recognise how much you’ve changed to deal with those circumstances.

Five months into a new role, some of that discomfort from not feeling wholly in control, or settled in a role may be superseded by uneasiness or worry from a whole set of different issues and challenges.

This can be a good time to take stock of where you are, and look at what will help you get through the next 5-6 months, perhaps it’ll be facing some uncomfortable situations.

Here are some suggestions on what to consider strengthening to help you through the next few months:

1.     Who’s in your support network?

So you may be asking, ‘support network’?!?

The very idea may seem a bit alien. It may also feel perhaps inappropriate - that having taken on this role, you should be able to just get on with it and that there are things you’ve involved in that wouldn’t be okay to share with other people.

And there are conversations and discussions that it would be unsuitable to talk about with anyone.

The idea of a support network is identifying or knowing who you might speak with when things get tough. Perhaps you can’t share everything with everyone in your support network, instead there are individuals who can help you, or understand specific situations/challenges that you can turn to when needed.

To help think about who is in your support network…

-      Who can you speak with in work? People whom you trust, perhaps understand your situation/challenges.

-      And what support from them would help you? Someone to listen because you need to rant and off load what’s going on? Someone to advise you?

-      How about people outside of work? Who might listen? Perhaps give you a different perspective?

2.     What are you finding particularly challenging?

Perhaps some of the things that were challenging when you first started are still difficult now. Perhaps some have become much easier to deal with and other challenges have arisen.

An overwhelming amount of work can be a significant difficulty in itself. It may also mask some tasks or activities that hard to deal with or face, which then (perhaps without it being obvious) become much bigger issues as time passes.

-      Are there things that you dread? Play on your mind? Perhaps things you keep pushing to one side to deal with later? These may not be immediately apparent, so perhaps try making a note each day during the coming week on what it is you may be putting off, or feel anxious about.

-      What might help you do something about it? It may not have to be resolving it completely, but something small which means you’re starting to face it in some way. Perhaps it could be having a conversation with someone to share what it is you’re facing?

-      And importantly note and celebrate each time you do something that is related to something you dread. It can help you recognise that whatever you did, however small that may feel, it was something that helped you move it forward.

3.     Dealing with uncertainty

Change brings with it uncertainty. Uncertainty brings unsettlement. Leading others positively through periods of change when you’re feeling uncertain and unsettled can be enormously difficult.

There aren’t straight forward answers to leading in uncertain times. Here are some areas to consider what this means for you, if this is something you’re facing.

-      What’s the purpose to the change(s)? Belief that change is important is critical as you lead others through. Dealing with their doubt will be a key part of helping them through the change and your belief will help you cope with that.

-      Who is with you? The more people who are with you and see the benefits, the more support you’ll have helping others through the period of change.

-      What are the risks and benefits? Change in uncertain times can feel risky. How much risk are you willing to take? What might you do to reduce the risk? And what happens if you don’t change? Being clear on this and being able to communicate this effectively to others can help to bring people with you.

-      Acknowledging that change is a journey. That can be difficult with a clear goal in mind. In uncertain times, it may be that the original goal you set out for is not necessarily the right place to be as time passes. Reassessing progress and where you’re headed is an important part of enabling the changes to bring benefits and to respond to the unexpected.

Where are you now? Do you feel prepared for the next 5-6 months? Have you got the right support around you? It’s important to know you’re not alone, that together you’ll work a way through.