War, climate crisis and inflation – we are confronted with many problems these days. Some people still tend to suppress their worries. You have dealt intensively with overcoming times of crisis, Mr. Albert. Is denial a good strategy? One can avoid negative feelings and problems to a certain extent. But at some point, reality hits you. You gain a bit of time by hiding unpleasant topics, but you often end up doing more damage afterwards. The sooner I actively deal with the crisis or my problems, the smaller the damage that remains in the end.
Your new book “9 truths that carry you through life” is about a happy life in difficult times. How does a healthy handling of crises look like? Take care of what you can change and accept everything else. This is age-old advice, which of course sounds logical at first – but it is still very difficult. It’s human nature to always seek improvement and get upset about things over which we have no direct control. In the end, everyone has only limited resources of time, energy and money. And if I use them incorrectly, then I miss them where they could really change something.
And where can I really change something with regard to war and crises? A big misconception of our digital age is that you could change something simply by expressing your opinion. But the truth is different. So we should focus more on doing well ourselves in this time of crisis. That alone is in our power. And if we are doing well, then we can start doing something good for the people around us.
That sounds like a very rational view of crises… Exactly. A high level of emotionality often makes dealing with crises difficult. If someone, out of sheer emotion, doesn’t see that there is also a rational side to the crisis, then the whole thing becomes more difficult. Instead, it helps to recognize that there is always a factual level and that it is not just about the world I live in, but about many people.
Even if I train my rational view, I am confronted with the suffering of the world every day. How do I manage to switch off? In order to calm down, you should set up an electronics-free time. It’s a way to keep yourself busy. For example with sports or a walk in nature. And social contacts that are good for you are enormously important for mental health. Apart from that, I should set up free time slots in my weekly planning in which I consciously do nothing.
In your work as a coach and author, you repeatedly deal with religiosity. The book also contains references to passages from the Bible. Why? Questions of principle we ask ourselves today are often spiritual in nature, rather than scientific or political. For example, when I ask myself the question of the meaning of life, I don’t find the answer in a study, but in philosophy, spirituality or religion. It is therefore worthwhile to deal with it and decide on your path in this area.
What answers have you already been able to find in your faith? For example, I find the biblical statement very realistic that everything in life has its time – good and bad. It’s grounding in good times and comforting in bad. So is the Christian idea that our existence does not end at death, but continues in other, even better ways.
They are convinced that faith can give us stability. And yet more and more people are leaving the church…Yes, unfortunately. I am convinced that the high therapeutic need today also results from the fact that traditional pastoral care by priests and pastors is used less. The associated rituals and spiritual concepts that are helpful for coping with life are also missing.
Being happy in difficult times – that’s what your new book is about. So you have dealt with the good and bad sides of our time. Where are we on this spectrum? We are probably living in one of the best times ever. In terms of both time and geography, things are really good for us in Germany. Of course there is good and bad, but everyone can do their part to make the good more and at the same time not have to despair of the bad.
