glas window
march 2020
thrive
How we can shift from surviving to thriving - by bringing GLAS colour into our lives
Features:
GLAS Cup Download - time management
Video of GLAS Cup
The 5 Principal Elements of GLAS
The GLAS Grid
Shifting from bottom left to top right
HOW QUICKLY THINGS CAN CHANGE!
Within the GLAS team, during normal times, we often talk about the fact so many of us are ‘stuck in doing’; busy with to-do lists, ticking boxes and trying to get through the day. However, these recent times are not normal and people aren’t ‘stuck in doing’ in the usual sense, but in a much more survival based way.
With COVID19 we are trying to cope at multiple levels, including our physical and mental health, our relationships with - and to - others, our work and income, and how we interact with the world and news around us. Many people are isolating, many are working from home, prevented from leaving and many have children off school.
This edition of The Window looks at how we move from surviving to thriving.
THE 5 ELEMENTS
1. IDENTITY (pink)
The importance of ‘self’, and knowing who we are, is vital. This element is the one that forms the foundation for all others. We might call this the source. Successful people know that they first need to gain self awareness and build personal confidence to give stability.
At this time, each of us needs to look after ourselves and make our physical and mental wellbeing a priority.
2. RELATE (green)
The second element is ‘relate’ - how we connect to others but also to ourselves and the relationship we have with ourself. Relate is about the bonds from us to other people, things, memories and events.
At this time, we need to reach out (electronically in many cases). It’s also where we need to understand that staying away from others is also the right and kindest thing to do.
3. DOING (orange)
Most of us want to know what to “do”, how to act and behave especially when everything’s up in the air. How we spend most of our time has changed - even if it’s just the place at which we’re working, in many cases it’s because our jobs are on hold. We still have chores and tasks that need to be carried out. If we only focus on this element, this quickly becomes SURVIVAL; eat, sleep, repeat.
Right now we need to ensure we balance ‘doing’ with the other 4 elements. But where possible, create a schedule for things that need to be done and share tasks with those you’re with.
4. EXTERNAL IMPACT (blue)
This is where impact comes from - external to us. If you think of the current virus, it has come from the external world and created an impact not just on our health but our freedom, economy and work. We are constantly being impacted - consciously and unconsciously.
Successful people are able to think ahead and be proactive. This is what we need to remember at the moment. Limited the influx of news feeds and take time to read a book or learn something new.
5. PURPOSE (purple)
In order to fully thrive, we need to have a sense of meaning and purpose. We need to understand the ‘why’. We often have people confuse meaning with ‘doing’ and ‘relate’ - such as raising children or building their business. In looking to understand purpose, it isn’t something that could be sold, be divorced, leave home, or die.
Purpose also helps us to gain clarity and focus - it creates the anchor to the future.
At the moment, we can utilise this element by remembering to step back and see the bigger picture. When things become too much, stay calm and think about a future beyond surviving.
GLAS GRID
This diagram shows the GLAS Grid which has the 5 elements. This shows that in life we can make a minimum or low impact through to a big positive impact (the vertical axis) and take a narrow view or wider perspective (the horizontal axis). Surviving is sitting in the negative impact and narrow view.
If we just stay busy ‘doing’ we switch to manic or stuck. This is survival. The trick to moving to thriving is to bring the other 4 colours into your life, home and work.
The GLAS Cup
We encourage clients to raise their awareness of how colours fit into their day to day life. This is a useful thing for everyone. If you have a diary, highlight what has happened in your day with each colour (as described above). The ideal percentages are shown on the cup to the side.
If we keep adding the orange of DOING and being in a state of surviving - we lose the other colours. There’s only so much time and energy but how we use it matters.
