How rituals during coronavirus can save your heart and head

Sharon Pearson tells how she's navigating these uncertain times with "small things"

Rituals are always important. And right now, rituals during coronavirus are really important. Solid anchors in rough waters.

For Sharon Pearson, founder of The Coaching Institute, daily rituals are key in how she's "navigating" life and its challenges amid coronavirus.

"Based on what I’ve been learning, I know if I can tap into the best of me consistently and reliably, I am going to have trust that I can navigate these times," says Sharon, who has noticed "it's the small things that matter most" now.

"So while there's a lot of uncertainty going on in the outside, I want there to be certainty on the inside.

"How do I do that? I don't fake it. I'm not faking it until I make it.

"There's a genuine sense of rituals that I do all day, that I don't even think about anymore."

Here's how Sharon is handling her days with calm love:

So, these are the questions Sharon asks herself constantly—yours might be totally different, of course—as part of her rituals.

"What am I grateful for?

"What can I appreciate about this moment?

"What do I love about this? And I don't mean what's going on in the world. I mean the moment I'm experiencing right now. A connection with someone."

Don't think that you have to summon up grandiose visions and dreams. "It can be be the smallest thing, like walking my dog," says Sharon.

"The ritual around where can I show compassion right now, or feel compassion. How can I tap into emotional intimacy with someone?"

She doesn't need to be physically close with the person—they don't even need to be in the same country for her to create that connection: "My rituals are all around the discipline of my mind."

One important thing to remember? As Sharon wrote in her 2019 book Ultimate You, "love for others starts with self love. We can't give what we don't see in ourselves."