4 Steps for Surviving Disaster
By Barbara
Hemphill
One of my favorite definitions of organizing is “the
ability to recover.” Daily we read of weather disasters
around the world, but we often face other situations
that feel disastrous. At no time in history have we
been faced with greater opportunities to practice our
ability to recover, or to put it another way, the ability
to cope with constant change. In the world of business,
we face mergers and downsizing, as well as the unprecedented
growth of home-based businesses with little or no administrative
support. An advertisement I saw recently read: “You
think you understand the situation, but what you don’t
understand is that the situation has changed.”
On the home front, the picture is similar. There are
more dual- career families and single-parent families
than ever before. In addition, due to our aging population,
many families are struggling with the challenges of
caring for their aging parents.
Several years ago, after a major hurricane hit our
community and we were without water, electricity, or
telephones, for nine days, I had the opportunity to
experience that reality – and to identify areas I could
have organized more effectively! (Fortunately, there
were also many examples of success!)
So how do you survive, and even thrive, in this ever-changing
and challenging world? Consider how you can use these
four strategies to make the best of any situation:
1. See change as an opportunity, not
an adversary. Werner Erhard’s advice to “Ride the horse
in the direction that it’s going” can make the difference
between breakthrough and breakdown. Because of the lack
of power in our area, schools were shut down and offices
were closed. It was, to say the least, an inconvenience.
But it was also an opportunity. All the members of our
family who were in the same situation got together daily.
Different members of the family contributed what they
were able; some cleared trees, some stood in line for
ice and water, some took care of frightened children,
and some prepared food on our outside grill. As we were
standing outside eating our roasted corn and grilled
chicken and onions, one of the children commented, “If
this is how the Indians ate, they were lucky.” One member
of the group, who is a teacher, took the opportunity
for a fascinating history lesson.
2. Study how the situation has changed,
and what you can do to take advantage of it. I was in
California on a business trip when the hurricane hit,
and was stranded in Dallas for two days waiting for
the Raleigh airport to open. My immediate reaction was
to think of all the crucial things that I needed to
do in the office, but obviously there was nothing I
could do about that. There turned out to be two great
opportunities. First, my son was getting married in
a few months, and I had yet to decide what I was going
to wear. I took the hotel shuttle to the shopping center,
and found a perfect dress. (As a bonus, it cost less
than half of what I had expected to pay!) Secondly,
I had an extra 24 hours of total peace and quiet to
complete a manuscript that was due the following week.
No feeling guilty about writing in the middle of the
night while my husband was sleeping!
3. Recognize that the only thing you
may be able to change is your attitude. I am continually
amazed at airline passengers who lose their tempers
at counter clerks who can do nothing about airplane
maintenance or weather. It doesn’t fix the plane or
the weather, and everyone suffers. One of the most moving
stories I ever read was of a Japanese prisoner of war
who was assigned to work all day every day in a sewer.
In the beginning he feared he could not survive, until
he came up with a plan. He decided to pretend that he
was in the garden with Jesus. Everyday he thanked God
that he didn’t have to suffer the indignity in front
of others, and that he was able to be alone with the
Master in this beautiful garden.
4. Ask yourself if your struggle is
really necessary. Oftentimes we put ourselves in situations,
and then complain because we’re so miserable. Yogi Berra’s
infinite wisdom “If the people don’t want to come out
to the park, nobody’s gonna stop them.” is worth consideration.
Trying to control situations over which we have no control
is a bad investment, and detracts from our ability to
tackle other issues where we could make a real difference.
Accept the situation, and move on!
Many of us wish that all this change would go away
– or at least slow down, but it’s won’t and it’s not!
Today may well be just a warm-up for the game ahead.
Tomorrow promises an even more complex work and a still
faster rate of change. A Brazilian proverb states “It
will all turn out in the end. If it doesn’t, it isn’t
the end yet!” Isn’t that comforting? Think of how many
times it’s been true in your own life. My own belief
in God’s plan assures me that it will indeed turn out
all right in the end. Use the opportunity of crisis
or change to identify the areas of life that you need
to organize more effectively, so that you will have
the ability to recover from whatever life throws your
way. Organizing always helps – even in the hurricanes
of life.
© Barbara Hemphill is the author of Kiplinger's Taming
the Paper Tiger at Work and Taming the Paper Tiger at
Home and co-author of Love It or Lose It: Living Clutter-Free
Forever. The mission of Hemphill Productivity Institute
is to help individuals and organizations create and
sustain a productive environment so they can accomplish
their work and enjoy their lives. We do this by organizing
space, information, and time. We can be reached at 800-427-0237
or at www.ProductiveEnvironment.com
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