As we move into Year Two of the COVID-19 pandemic and a humanitarian crisis plays out on the world’s stage in Ukraine, the stress of a strained world continues to build. Anxiety and empathy fatigue are on the rise and joy seems more elusive than ever. My standard answer to “How are you?” hoovers around “blah” or “meh, depending on the day. And my experience is not unique. More and more people are reporting a discontent that is difficult to name.
But what is it? A New York Times article by renowned organizational psychologist Adam Grant puts a name to it: languishing.
Above and beyond depression, grief, loneliness, or burnout, languishing means not making progress or moving forward. Or, to put a more descriptive definition out there, “Languishing is a sense of stagnation and emptiness. It feels as if you’re muddling through your days, looking at your life through a foggy windshield.”
And that foggy windshield effect is making it very difficult to move forward. Which perpetuates the feeling of going nowhere. It’s the natural progression from the fear and stress of the pandemic, but the extended stay is dragging on and on. And on.
But the true detriment impacts your engagement and satisfaction with work, relationships, and wellbeing. As Grant points out, “Languishing dulls your motivation, disrupts your ability to focus, and triples the odds that you’ll cut back on work.”
So while there is the standard battle tactics – find meaningful activities, new challenges, engaging hobbies – there’s also an important element of feeling successful in the midst of languishing: small steps to accomplish bigger goals. Starting small helps the daunting tasks feel less unachievable. And genuinely find satisfaction in your wins, both big and small.
Because languishing is beyond just your thoughts and emotions – it’s about your circumstances and the world around you. Give yourself and others grace while we all learn how to operate in a world devoid of normalcy.
The Character of a Happy Life 