Lockdowns suck.
And having been subjected to them for nearly a year in many parts of the West we’ve had ample time to verify that proposition. No need for guesswork. Instead, full and unwelcome exposure has enabled us to reach this conclusion with surety – that lockdowns 100% definitely suck.
That being said, what options are available to you, dear reader, right now in mid-February 2021?
Basically it boils down to three possibilities (and one of them is really not very good). Here they are – choose wisely.
1. You can sit around complaining
This is the not-very-good option. And it’s what much of the populous is doing. This thing has happened that you are not happy about and you are powerless over it. And – naturally – you want to vent your unhappiness, your frustration about the big, bad thing. And so you do . . . to friends, family, the man in the corner shop, the woman in the park, plus millions of strangers on Twitter and in the comments sections of online newspapers.
And where does it get you?
Precisely nowhere.
At least it’s low-investment I suppose. But then again it isn’t really – you are making an investment. One of time, and (negative) energy. And for your pains you are getting . . . nothing. Nothing except maybe the occasional attaboy from a fellow disgruntled anon.
2. Travel
Your second option is to get around the problem by simply upping sticks and travelling to somewhere where restrictions are minimal or even non-existent. Dubai is one such place (although it’s become a little less attractive for Brits with jobs to come back to now that it’s been put on the UK’s ‘red list’.) Mexico is another welcoming destination where the beaches are white, the sand is hot, and the party is in full swing. And if you like it cold then parts of Europe – in particular Ukraine and Belarus – offer a tempting escape.
The travel route is a good one, and arguably the best. However, there are a couple of things to bear in mind. The first is the implications of leaving your home base in terms of costs and messing around with quarantine, PCR tests and all the rest of it.
Plus, if you’re from the UK you may want to consider what your options would be for returning if more countries are put on that pesky ‘red list’. (Ditto if your country is operating a similar system).
Also, should think seriously about the opportunity cost you may incur from travelling right now. Because let’s face it, while travel is a lot of fun, and it may be extremely tempting to get out of dodge at the moment, the likelihood of you putting your all into your work while you’re on the road is, well, in question let’s say.
Which leads us onto point 3 . . .
3. Stay put and use the time to grind
Your third option is to simply accept what’s going on, stay where you are and grind like hell.
And actually, although it may sound a little nerdy, this option has much to recommend it. Which is why it’s the one I’ve plumped for to this point.
You see, the beginning of a new year (and the first quarter in particular) is really important in terms of setting yourself up for a profitable and successful calendar year. So much so that the blogger Blackdragon (AKA Caleb Jones) wrote a fantastic piece about it some time ago that stuck with me.
In his article Jones argued that the early part of the year is vital for entrepreneurs (and anyone else really), since it is now that the bulk of the work gets done.
Why? Because the second and third quarters span spring and summer, and what happens then? The weather gets better. People start booking trips and vacations. The city centres empty out. All of a sudden it’s harder to get hold of people, and worse, you may feel less inclined to work hard yourself as the nights get longer, the weather gets better and hemlines start rising.
And after summer? We hit Q4 – which is basically the great Xmas vortex. Because let’s not kid ourselves, as soon as September bids a hazy farewell and we’re into October it may just as well be Christmas. Well we say it every year, don’t we – how come Christmas keeps starting earlier and earlier? And once again, just like in the summer, your business contacts will become more and more elusive as parties, events and gatherings crop up – not to mention family functions – and all the time and bandwidth you might otherwise have had is sucked out of the season by Santa.
Which really just leaves you Jan, Feb, March and maybe a little of April and May to really get down to business. Because for many much of the rest of the year is little better than an extended holiday. So you might as well spend the time grinding, thus allowing for a more measured pace of life around the middle of the year.
Now as it happens, in 2021 this really isn’t a bad strategy anyway since most of the world is closed. And the re-opening is likely to start gathering steam in the summer. So all things considered, if you can just hold out for another month of two, but use this time to further your own personal goals in business, fitness and learning social skills (weight these depending on what is most pressing for you) then you’ll be in a good place.
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