STF

Business As Usual - CNS Office - Tag Kingston

Posted Sept. 13, 2022, 11:54 a.m. by Lieutenant Junior Grade Janna Kingston (Counsellor) (Lindsay B)

Posted by Lieutenant Commander Serena Stone (Executive Officer) in Business As Usual - CNS Office - Tag Kingston

Posted by Lieutenant Junior Grade Janna Kingston (Counsellor) in Business As Usual - CNS Office - Tag Kingston

Posted by Lieutenant Commander Serena Stone (Executive Officer) in Business As Usual - CNS Office - Tag Kingston
Posted by… suppressed (2) by the Post Ghost! 👻

(snip)

“Well, it depends. If I’m overwhelmed, I’ll usually take a few minutes to brain dump and re-prioritize. Most immediate or important things get handled first. Or if I’m planning for the next day I try to eat the biggest frogs first. If you have to eat a frog, best way to do it.” Serena thought for a moment. “I try to deal with most things directly. Letting them pile up is bad and just makes things worse. If it’s handled early, it’s a non-issue. I try to make sure communication is clear and thorough, so I’m not seeing problems where there aren’t any and start spiraling. And I get stuck in an anxious ‘what if’ loop, I’ve learned to interrupt it, or reframe it. Instead of ‘What if I screw up’ or ‘What if x bad thing happens’ …” She sighed, then took a breath. “‘What if it all works out?’ Or… ‘What if we pull x thing off? Then what?’ The former is all about failure and disappointing people. The latter looks for success, for the right outcome, but it’s not wishful thinking. It’s giving the reticular activating system better programming.”

She chewed her lower lip for a moment. “When there’s something I don’t want to do, but need to do, I’ll tend to use The Five Second Rule. I count backwards in my head from five. Five, four, three, two, one… And go. It interrupts the pre-frontal cortex, breaks the cycle, makes a decision. And if you can start, the rest gets a lot easier. Starting rituals. All I have to do is work on whatever it is a little bit. Five minutes. A paragraph. Whatever it is. Soon as I get started, it gets over the hump and builds momentum. The resistance is just mental. It doesn’t actually mean the task is any harder. It’s just how I’m feeling about it.” She shrugged one shoulder.

“I guess I’ve picked up some tools over the years,” she added.

Lt Cmdr Stone, XO

Janna made some notes on her PaDD, leaning forward and gazing up at Serena when she wasn’t making notes. She smiled and nodded. “Those sound like excellent tools and ones that will definitely help in the moment with whatever is going on. On a more pulled back view what do you do for self care? What things do you do on a daily or weekly view that help manage anxiety and other issues that might come up?”

~Jann Kingston, CNS

The corners of her mouth drew into a thoughtful frown. “I keep up with a good workout routine, weights and cardio. Combatives or martial arts a few times a week. Keeps me proficient, but the exercise is just as good for the mind as it is the body.” She shrugged one shoulder. “I tend to go for walks when I can. If I can get holodeck time to go hiking, I usually will. I’d prefer a real planet, real gravity though. For downtime I tend to watch old shows and entertainment feeds. I’ll also take the time to journal. At least five hundred to seven hundred and fifty words a day. Noting how I feel, what I need, and what I would love for the future. Goals, things like that.” She shrugged. “I’m not really sure if any of it counts, but…” The redhead trailed off. There was a sense then of nervousness, trying not to fidget, and feeling under the microscope, like she was being tested, but also not sure what the right answer was. But ultimately just being honest without being overly earnest. There wasn’t any point in tryig to be deceptive. it only hindered the process.

Lt Cmdr Stone, XO

Janna smiled. “Good. I’m glad to see you have an array of coping mechanisms. The work of a first officer can be overwhelming in its ability to take over your life. My advice is to make sure you make an effort to keep these activities scheduled into your days. Trust me, if you don’t block off the time, it’ll get eaten up by work.”

“What are you looking forward to most in this new position, and do you have anything you’re concerned about?”

~Janna Kingston, CNS

Serena thought it over for a long time, chewing her lower lip. “To be honest, it’s one thing running a department. It’s another coordinating almost a thousand crew. Being responsible for everybody aboard. So… I guess advanced leadership skills. Better stress management. Better time management. There’s not really any one thing I can say for sure. I’m pretty sure I’m gonna drown for a bit before I can surf again.”

Serena Stone, XO

Janna nodded as she made some notes. “We both know that you know this, but a reminder that you’re not alone in this. The captain is in a new role on this ship as well. Lean on him and make sure you’re honest about how you’re doing. You’ll find him an excellent listener,” she said, the smile that appeared bordering on a smirk. “But also you have lots of coping skills. Use them and then do one final, very important thing.”

She looked up at Stone and gazed intently. “Give yourself a break. Don’t expect perfection and allow yourself to make mistakes. We all do and this crew has bene through a lot. I think you’ll find them rather compassionate as a whole.”

~Janna Kingston, CNS


Posts on USS Athena

In topic

Posted since


© 1991-2024 STF. Terms of Service

Version 1.15.9