Did you also see this picture a few weeks ago?
It says: Dear God, Could you please delete and reinstall the year 2020? It’s got a virus! Thanks.
Now everyone is slowly coming back from their well-deserved summer holidays, and for many, the time of the home office is also coming to an end. For some, returning to the office will feel like a new start. But before we get started, it might be a good idea to look back.
Learnings
What have we learned about ourselves in the last six months? How did we manage to combine all areas (work, family, hobbies) in one place? How long were we able to keep our optimism? How did we spend the time meaningfully? Which priorities have changed? Which people did we miss the most? What new insights have we gained? What new skills and competencies have we built up? How important are these on the scale of things we like to do?
Planning
We will soon start planning for 2021. Some people will be tempted to simply adopt the plan for 2020 and adjust it in response to the crisis. What would the plan for 2021 look like if we took into account everything we learned in 2020 with and through the crisis? Do we want to travel more or less or differently? How much time do we want to spend with family and hobbies? How do we deal with newly acquired skills – do we simply check them off or actually use them?
These questions are relevant for employers as well as employees. Crises have been proven to bring out the best and the worst in people. If we concentrate on the best: What can we do with it? Let’s play through a few examples.
Examples
An accountant was shopping for neighbours. She discovered that she has a previously unused organizational talent and a good connection to people. These skills have not been tested at work so far. So how can financial skills be combined with organisational and social skills? Maybe there is just such a project that does not really deal with a financial topic (although every project is somehow financial), but needs a competent project management that masters good stakeholder management? Sounds appropriate, doesn’t it?
A marketing manager wanted to let his parents, who lived in a home, at least audibly know that he was thinking of them. So without further ado he played music in front of the old people’s home. In the process, he rediscovered his love of music and making music. This love had been forgotten due to the stress of his job. And he noticed that his effectiveness on the job after one hour of playing music was much higher than without music. So now he has planned to take breaks several times a week to make music. This is good for his own mind and for the company, which gets a more productive employee.
There are certainly hundreds of other examples. I would like to invite you to explore your inner self. This crisis has been difficult in many ways. But there are also positive aspects to it. We should not let THAT go to waste.
If you are looking for a sparring partner: I’m here for you!
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