Jasna Burza is a Minneapolis-based life and business coach (and to be totally transparent, a dear friend of mine). For more than a decade, she has channeled the wisdom and insight she has gained from her own life experiences — from living in a refugee camp as a child during the Bosnian War to experiencing years of infertility when trying to start family — as well as extensive teachings and trainings to help hundreds of people create their dream lives and businesses. She believes in the light and sees the coronavirus outbreak as an opportunity to slow down, reset and focus on what really matters. We chatted with her about maintaining positivity, developing resiliency and making the most of this pause of our daily lives.
How can we maintain positivity when everything seems so bleak?
These are bizarre times filled with uncertainty, but it doesn’t have to be bleak. I think everything seems bleak if we don’t have hope, and hope is the elixir that cures almost any circumstance no matter how dire. Our emotional state is directly correlated to our thoughts, which are influenced by our environment and the information we ingest. Positivity, solidarity and self-care are musts right now. It’s prudent to be smart and to protect ourselves, but feeding our fear with constant television watching is the first thing I would remove from our lives.
I don’t see this situation as bleak; in fact, this may be the greatest gift we have ever been given. Yes, many are hurting, and yes, my entire household is without income right now, but I also look around and see the beauty and potential in the situation: a slower pace of life, more quality family time, time to go within, time to address old traumas, time to finish house projects, time to read the book, time to start that business… I see creativity coming through, people coming together in solidarity, talks happening about protecting Mother Earth, and brilliant humans coming up with the most incredible inventions. One man invented a respirator in 10 days. I actually see immense beauty and potential in this reset, which has been needed in the sea of anxiety, overwhelm and unhappiness.
All of these things increase life satisfaction and could change our lives forever. It’s a matter of perception bias: What you choose to believe, you will find evidence of. And while I am fully aware that this is a scary time for so many of us, I also choose to look at the good things in all of this, and that alone can change your entire outlook on life.
Is it possible to develop greater resiliency? And how can we do that quickly?
Absolutely! Resiliency is a muscle; it’s what we develop in our lived-through hardships. It helps us cope with unfortunate or challenging times in our lives. To develop resilience, you have to be placed in an uncomfortable situation, believe you can handle it, and then, without even necessarily knowing how, show up for yourself and keep going despite the difficulty. If this pandemic is bringing up fear and anxiety, it means it’s only exacerbating what was there before the pandemic. In that sense, the pandemic is a gift reminding us to learn how to handle difficult times, because this is not the last challenging time we will face. Life is not easy, and we have to develop the skill of overcoming no matter what happens to us in our lives.
So how do we do that? It starts by saying that we can do hard things. That people have gone through worse. That we are strong and not weak. That we will move forward day by day the best we can. This pandemic is preparing us for cancer, divorce, war, the death of a loved one, the loss of a child, or any other unfortunate life event. I have experienced so many of these. While it’s unfortunate that I lived in a refugee camp as a little girl, I am not living in fear now because I have perspective and I know that this shall pass and we will somehow be better for it.
Instead of stressing over the latest news report, where can we better channel that energy?
I cannot stress this enough: Stop watching the news. Just stop. There is a difference between staying informed and obsessing. That energy is poisoning your environment and making you sick and weak. We need to increase our vibration and work on mindfulness. The recipe is actually quite simple and hasn’t changed since the beginning of time: spend a lot of time in nature, spend time with children or animals if you are able, find some kind of mindfulness practice, eat good food, move your body, laugh, dance, listen to uplifting music, get lost in your art, be of service to others, let the sun kiss your face. We are responsible for our energy and our mood. Our environment and what we consume directs our emotions, and those are things we can control.
How do we use this pause of our regular daily lives for introspection and growth?
Oh, my favorite subject. For far too long now, we have embraced the state of overwhelm, anxiety and stress as a normal daily occurrence, because we never saw a way out. We just kept going and going, slaves to worldly expectations and material gain that was never going to make us happy. I rejoice now because so many of us are realizing how stressed out we were and how much we actually appreciate the slow pace of life. I cannot stress this enough: This is a gift we have been given. The money will come back and we will be OK, but we are being kindly invited to embrace this with the rest of humanity and go within.
What a brilliant time to take stock of our life, do the things we have always wanted to do, discover who we truly are, and create the vision for a life that actually delivers fulfillment and inner peace. Isn’t that what we all ultimately want? What we think power, fame and material gain will give us? Everything we have ever needed is already within, and this is our chance to realize that. I recommend spending time alone, praying, journaling, walking in nature, talking to a therapist or a coach (or a good friend), and excavating the most authentic parts of ourselves that have been buried for way too long.
Are there lessons to be learned from this very challenging time we’re all facing?
There are personal lessons and national lessons and global lessons. Maybe it’s because of my challenging childhood, but I don’t think this is the last global pandemic or challenge of its kind. This is the time to get pragmatic and take stock of what’s not working. Do we have a vulnerable business? How can we adjust should this ever happen again? If we got caught without savings or we lost our job, we have to start working on that going forward. If we are overly dependent on certain things in life, time to reevaluate. If we are feeling anxious and stressed, time to address that because it was there long before this situation.
How can we mourn for the world without feeling totally overwhelmed?
I don’t believe this is the time to mourn. I believe it’s time to look at the beautiful things happening in the world as a result of this situation. I am sad for anyone who might die or lose a loved one or lose their job during this time — I am reporting to you from a household with no income! — but I cannot help myself or anyone else if I lower my vibration and live in the state of apathy. Right now and more than ever before, we have to be the light, we have to remain positive and we have to believe that good will come out of this. I think we can empathize with the grief but remain extremely joyful because it is the only way to truly help someone.
Can you tell us more about the free online training sessions you’re currently offering?
I feel like I have been preparing for this my entire life. I have never been calmer or more at peace. I have had the most unfortunate things happen to me and have been able to survive and thrive. And my work has prepared me to hold space for those going through challenging times. So the best thing I can do right now is show up for humanity. I have all this newfound free time so I want to give and teach and offer support. Weekly, I offer online training sessions that address mindset, resilience and business. Every Friday at noon, I host a free life and business coaching hour for anyone who may not be able to afford those services. I get hundreds of messages weekly so I listen to what people need the most and offer trainings and coaching based on it. It’s free and open to anyone.
Any parting wisdom for our readers?
My beautiful humans, this will pass and we will be OK. This is the first time in history that our entire world is suffering from the same malady, but every challenge in it has the solution. Use the pause. Surrender to this. Our government is coming through to support the most vulnerable, financially and otherwise. We will be OK. Money will come back, and this is a unique gift to slow down and focus on the things that matter most — and often, they don’t cost a thing. You are strong and able and together. We will get through this and up level together. I am sending you all my love and my light and holding you in my prayers.
