What Uncertainty Teaches You About Control (Lessons from March 2020)
Remember March 2020? The panic buying, the school closures, the complete paralysis of not knowing what to do next in your business?
Six years later, that specific crisis has passed. But the feeling of being completely out of control? That's still showing up. When your schedule explodes. When revenue drops. When everything you planned falls apart by Tuesday.
This episode shares a message I wrote to my community during those early lockdown days—a list of small, controllable actions you can take when business feels slow or when you need to do something productive because everything else feels chaotic.
These lessons come straight from what I teach inside Chaos Detox—because when you can't control the outcome, you can always control your effort, your focus, and your next step. That's where your agency lives.
In this episode, you'll learn:
Why feeling out of control triggers paralysis (and what to do instead)
The "bread story" that explains why we spiral over small decisions during uncertain times
10 actionable tasks you can do when business feels chaotic or slow
How small, intentional actions remind you that you have agency
Why uncertainty didn't end in 2020—and how to handle it when it shows up in your business
The context of March 2020 and business paralysis (01:56)
Why we spiral over small decisions when everything feels out of control (02:00)
The list of positive actions for slow business or chaotic weeks (05:05)
Why these strategies still work six years later (07:47)
Taking small actions when you feel powerless (09:29)
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Want to read the original blog post that inspired this episode?
CLICK HERE → A Time Capsule from March 2020: Navigating Uncertainty and Finding Control
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Full Episode Transcript
(44) What Uncertainty Teaches You About Control (Lessons from March 2020)
[00:00:00] Six years ago this week, the world stopped, and if you were running a business back then, you probably remembered that specific flavor of panic when everything you planned became irrelevant overnight. Welcome to Ditch the Chaos. I'm Cara Chace, and this is your space to figure out how to run a life in business without running yourself into the ground.
[00:00:22] Today I am sharing something a little different, a message I wrote to my community in March, 2020. When lockdown started, and here's why it matters now that specific crisis has passed, but the lessons about navigating uncertainty and focusing on what you can control are timeless.
[00:00:41] So here's how this reflection piece came about. I was cleaning out my Google Drive the other day because apparently that's what I do when I need to feel proactive and less overwhelmed. And I stumbled across an email I sent to my list in March, 2020. Six years ago, right when everything shut down, and I know [00:01:00] that we are all so tired of talking about that time.
[00:01:03] I certainly am, but reading through that email made me realize how relevant the message still is. Reading it took me back to that moment, that anxiety of not knowing what was coming or what to do. The weight of trying to keep my business running while everything around us was falling apart. The paralysis of wondering if I should keep marketing or if that made me tone deaf.
[00:01:26] And even though the crisis that prompted that email is over, the advice I gave then still applies because uncertainty didn't end in 2020 it's just a big part of being an entrepreneur, part of being human. So I want to read you parts of that email today, not as a nostalgia trip, but as a reminder that you've survived hard things before and the strategies that got you through then can get you through whatever uncertainty you're facing now
[00:01:54] let me set the scene for you.
[00:01:56] It was March 13th, 2020. [00:02:00] Schools were closing. People were panic, buying toilet paper. Nobody knew if this was going to last two weeks or two years. And if you were a business owner, you probably were staring at your calendar watching everything cancel in real time. I had just gotten off a Voxer call with a mastermind buddy, and she was in tears full on sobbing.
[00:02:19] Not because anything terrible had happened to her personally, but because she felt so completely out of control. And here's what she said, that stuck with me. She had gone to the store the night before and only bought snacks and coffee. But now she was second guessing herself. Should she go back for bread?
[00:02:39] Was that giving into the fear or was only getting snacks too frivolous? Like she wasn't taking this seriously enough. Bread. She was spiraling over whether or not to buy bread. And that might sound a little dramatic, but it wasn't really about the bread. It was about feeling completely powerless in a situation she couldn't [00:03:00] control.
[00:03:01] And when you're someone who manages anxiety by staying in control, which let's be honest, describes most of us high capacity woman entrepreneurs not having control feels terrifying. So I told her, go get the bread if that makes you feel better. Do the thing that gives you a sense of agency, even if it's small.
[00:03:23] Because that's what this was really about, finding something, anything that you could control when everything else felt like it was coming undone. Now here's where it gets relevant to business in general. The same paralysis showed up for all of us as entrepreneurs. We didn't know what to say. We didn't know if we should keep marketing or if that made us look insensitive.
[00:03:46] We didn't know if we should pivot everything online or wait it out. I remember the questions flooding my inbox. Should I still launch my course? Is it tone deaf to talk about my business right now? Do I acknowledge what's [00:04:00] happening or just keep going? And here's what I wrote in that email because I think it still applies today.
[00:04:06] There's no right answer. You have to do what feels right and authentic for you. But, and this is important, if you're stuck at home, if your income is uncertain, if you're worried about how to keep things running while you deal with something major in your life, you need something to focus on, something you can control.
[00:04:27] And not because ignoring your feelings is healthy, but because taking action, even a small action helps you feel less powerless. So here's what I gave my community back then. A list of things you can do in your business when business is slow or when you need to take positive action because you feel out of control.
[00:04:49] And I wanna read this to you now because guess what? These still work. Whether you're dealing with a global pandemic or just a crazy week when everything feels like it's falling apart and you don't know [00:05:00] what to do next, you might wanna grab a pen and jot down this list. Are you ready?
[00:05:05] Here we go. Go through your entire website on a mobile device. When was the last time you actually did that? Check for anything that looks wonky and fix it. It's productive. It's useful, and it gives you a quick win. Update your content for better SEO. Go back through old blog posts or videos or podcast show notes and refresh them with updated information and keywords.
[00:05:32] It's something you can control that has long-term payoff. Do a backend admin cleanup. If you run an online store, organize your inventory and back office setup. If you're a service provider, clean up your Google Drive. Take inventory of the apps you're paying for, check your website for broken links. This is the stuff that always gets pushed to someday because it's not urgent, but it makes you feel so much better when it's done, and I always find [00:06:00] something that needs fixing when I do this backend cleanup.
[00:06:03] Brainstorm ways to take your business online, even if you're not a brick and mortar business. Think about what parts of your business could be more streamlined, automated, scalable, and flexible. What would make your life easier if things got chaotic again? Talk to your ideal customers, not to sell them anything, just to check in to understand what they're dealing with, to build real connection.
[00:06:28] This is always valuable, but especially when you're feeling disconnected from your audience. Create a new lead magnet. Build your email list. Give people something useful, is forward momentum. When everything else feels stuck, learn something new. Remember all those courses you've bought but never finished?
[00:06:47] Now could be the perfect time, not because you need another skill to be successful, but because learning something gives your brain a break from spiraling and can kickstart some inspired creativity, rearrange your [00:07:00] workspace, there's something about physically shifting your environment that lets fresh creative energy in.
[00:07:05] I know it sounds small, but it works. Plan and batch your content. Get ahead on your content calendar, batch. Create as much as you can. Your future self will. Thank you. Reach out to your business besties. See how they're doing. Ask how you can help each other. Community is everything when things feel uncertain,
[00:07:24] and here's what I wrote at the end of that list, and I still believe this today. I get scared and overwhelmed too. But I've learned to always, always look for opportunities to feel better and be inspired. So why am I sharing this email now six years later? Because what I've realized is uncertainty didn't end when the pandemic did.
[00:07:47] You're still gonna have weeks when everything you planned falls apart. When a client emergency blows up your schedule, when your kid gets sick and you have to cancel everything, when the algorithm changes or your revenue drops, or your [00:08:00] confidence takes a hit, you're still gonna have moments when you feel completely out of control.
[00:08:05] And in those moments, you need to remember this. You can't control everything, but you can control something. You can go update your website, you can clean up your Google Drive. You can reach out to a past client. You can batch next week's content.
[00:08:20] You can rearrange your desk. These aren't really distractions in this case. They're not avoidance. They're small, intentional actions that remind you. You have agency, you're capable, and you can do hard things. And here's the irony that is not lost on me. When I found this email, I was cleaning out my Google Drive because my own life. is a bit of a upheaval right now.
[00:08:45] I'm in my first year of relaunching my business after two years off dealing with health issues. I'm doing two major new things, this podcast and writing a book, plus putting a pause on social media content to make room for those things. [00:09:00] And let me tell you, helping women understand how and why they need to make big changes in their life is so much harder than doing Pinterest marketing for small businesses.
[00:09:11] Things feel uncertain in a completely different way than they did in 2020, but the feeling itself is much the same, that I don't know what's coming next and I need to feel like I have a little bit of control feeling. So I did what I advised my community to do back then. I took small actions.
[00:09:29] I cleaned out my Google Drive, and in doing that, I found this message that reminded me of my own advice, which I need to, you've done hard things before and you'll get through this. So here's what I want you to take from this. The next time you feel stuck, overwhelmed, or completely outta control, and you will, because that's just part of running a business and living a full life.
[00:09:50] Don't spiral. Take one small action. Pick something from this list or make your own list, but do something that reminds you that even when you can't [00:10:00] control the outcome, you can control your effort, your focus, and your next step. That's where your power is. Here's your reset and reclaim action step for the week.
[00:10:10] Pick one thing from the list that I shared, or choose your own small controllable action and do it this week. Not because it's urgent, not because it's going to solve all of your problems. But because it will remind you that you have agency. Maybe it's cleaning up your Google Drive, maybe it's updating an old blog post.
[00:10:27] Maybe it's reaching out to a client just to check in whatever it is, do it intentionally and notice how it feels to take control of something small when everything else feels crazy. That's it. Just start there.
[00:10:40] If this episode resonated, I'd love to have you join the Productivity Rebellion. It's my free monthly guide for women who refuse to choose between success and sanity.
[00:10:50] Once a month, you'll get one productivity strategy that actually fits your real busy life behind the scenes. Stories from my month, not Instagram. Perfect advice [00:11:00] and the chance to ask me anything. I answer subscriber questions on the show. Think of it as your monthly reset when you're tired of holding everything together with duct tape and coffee.
[00:11:09] You can sign up for free at carachace.com/productivity-rebellion. Thanks for listening. If this helped, please leave a review. It helps other women entrepreneurs find the show. I'm Cara Chace reminding you to keep questioning the rules and making your own. And PS, if you're ready to stop following productivity systems that don't fit your life, check out Chaos Detox.
[00:11:33] It's not another course giving you a rigid system or template to follow. It's a framework that teaches you how to create your own time management methods. Learn more at carachace.com/chaos-detox.
Listen to More Episodes ↓
Six years ago, the world stopped. And if you were running a business in March 2020, you remember that specific panic when everything you planned became irrelevant overnight. This episode shares a timeless message about navigating uncertainty and focusing on what you can control—even when everything feels chaotic.