Finding Purpose and Peace in a VUCA world

I recently got together with a dear friend and former colleague. She was sharing stories about the enormous stress that people from our former company were under. She asked me whether I thought that level of stress was unique to that company’s culture.

Given what I hear from my clients, I responded, that sadly, no, it’s not unique. It’s endemic.

We live in a VUCA world. Originally coined by the military to describe the more complex multilateral world post-Cold War, VUCA emphasizes that the world we operate in is

• Volatile – change is rapid and unpredictable in its nature and extent.

• Uncertain – the present is unclear, and the future is uncertain.

• Complex – many different, interconnected factors come into play, with the potential to cause chaos and confusion.

• Ambiguous – there is a lack of clarity or awareness about situations.

We all feel the impact, regardless of our occupation, profession, industry, or role. We seem to be bombarded with messages that reinforce the feelings of uncertainty, anxiety, and stress.

Political leaders and news organizations intentionally appeal to our human negativity bias. Social media and marketers do the same, reinforcing our feelings of not being enough or having enough. Leaders in our workplaces seem to frame every challenge in a negative way, and we’re constantly and consistently triggered by frustrating annoyances like daily traffic and tech challenges.

The stress we feel can feel useful – it can seemingly drive us to perform and deliver. Our culture that’s highly focused on indulgence, achievement, and individualism reinforces that feeling. And we can get rewarded for the performance. It’s why we tend to train our brains to be in this mode.

Yet it’s not good for us.

That “performance mode” we perceive is a state of high sympathetic nervous system (SNS) arousal. It’s our fight, flight, or freeze reactive state. We start perceiving things as threatening that are in fact benign. We narrow our focus and miss the broader context.

Neuroscientists tell us that living in this state can cause cognitive, perceptual, and emotional impairment. To make it worse, because human beings naturally mirror other human beings, it’s contagious – we’re contributing to the VUCA.

The antidote? Train your brain’s empathic network by activating the parasympathetic nervous system (PNS). PNS is a state of renewal that delivers real neurobiological benefits. If SNS is the gas that can help us get things done, PNS is the brakes that allow us to pause, reflect, and create. To be curious, present, and kind. PNS is the only state that allows us to reverse what stress does in our body.

Just like SNS, PNS is contagious. As we live more often in this state, we positively impact the other people in the VUCA environments around us.

So how do we make the shift? How do we train ourselves to move from SNS to PNS?

To start, try listing the people who helped you become who you are. Think of what they did to help you. Now make a note of how you feel reflecting on those moments.

You just did an exercise to help train your brain’s empathic network by activating your parasympathetic nervous system.

To keep this going and build momentum, adopt some simple routines that you can do consistently. Keep it simple and repeatable and strive for more, briefer moments rather than fewer, larger breaks. Build boundaries by scheduling mini breaks in your day (actually put them on your calendar and hold them as sacred).

Try:

• Stepping outside for 5 or 10 minutes and doing nothing. Just be.

• Writing down 3 things you are grateful for

• Practicing box breathing. Inhale for 4 seconds, hold it for 4 seconds, exhale for 4 seconds, hold for 4 seconds. Repeat 4 times.

• Going for a short stroll.

• Petting your dog or cat.

• Listening to music.

• Reading or listening to something funny and laughing out loud.

As with everything, give yourself grace. Try it for a few days and if it’s not working, try something else. If you want to do it but feel like you can’t fit it in, reflect on what you’re prioritizing instead. With kindness, ask yourself whether that thing is truly more important to you.

Over a surprisingly short amount of time, you can build your ability to live with greater peace in this world and to help those around you do the same.

For deeper learning

• Richard Boyatzis: Intentional Change Theory, leadership, emotional intelligence; “Helping People Change”