When events are chaotic, or things change very rapidly, oftentimes people ask the question: “What can I do?”
It is only natural to want to take control of a situation that feels out of control. In order to do that, we want to take action, even if it is not clear what that action should be.
Take a moment to consider what action is appropriate. It may also help to consider what is possible. Where those two things overlap, meaningful steps can be taken.
For example, let’s consider someone who is having trouble at work. Feeling it necessary to do something, they might, say, perform a deep clean of their home. Cleaning feels like progress, and while having a clean home is a good thing, it doesn’t have any impact on the actual problem. The action is possible, but not appropriate.
A lot of people are feeling helpless or powerless right now. In reality, each person has more power and more control than they realize.
So how do you tap into that? What can I do in order to make a difference? How can we overcome the despair that tells us the situation is out of our hands?
Related questions: How much power does an individual have? How can you help? How can we turn ideas into actions? How can we turn sadness into constructive action?