I don’t want to get better at using Zoom.
I don’t want to get better at being together, apart. I don’t want to get better at being virtual as opposed to being face-to-face. I’ll tolerate it for now, but it’s not human. It’s certainly no way to be at our best, for each other.
We have taken a very sensible and widespread approach to prevent the spread of COVID-19, with massive scaling back of our liberties. For many, this has highlighted just how much we take for granted, both in our personal lives, as well as our professional lives.
This has made me realise that I never want to give up working together, with our colleagues and in our teams, shoulder to shoulder. I want to be face-to-face, sharing the effort, sharing the disappointments and sharing the success.
Operating virtually is just not something I ever want to be good at.
Recently, my middle son Jackson, competed in the Olympic trials for selection into the Australian kayaking team for the 2021 Tokyo Olympics. Unfortunately, he fell agonisingly short. Despite it being an incredible effort, based on where he started 20 months ago, it was a heartbreaking moment for him. Likewise for me, watching him go through it.
To clear his mind and reset, he went away for a week and a half and when he came back, all I wanted to do was give him a hug. To have him feel my love for him and to console him. But we were unable to as COVID-19 rules prohibit it.
We experience another overwhelmingly torturous situation when we had to say goodbye to a family member recently. Due to strict social distancing rules in the United Kingdom and restrictions to the size of groups allowed to attend such services, the cremation was unfortunately scaled back, with only immediate family able to attend. To make matters worse, those in attendance couldn’t even console each other with a hug to share the grief.
It was heartbreaking to see family members having to distance themselves by a meter and a half to two meters from each other. And with travel restrictions in play in response to the outbreak, we were forced to join the cremation virtually, unable to attend in person. It was tough enough saying goodbye… but to not be able to share the grief and experience love through human connection, was agonising.
So I’ve decided, I’m not going to commit to getting better at Zoom.
I’m not going to try and get better at operating virtually. I don’t want to get better at doing business this way. I’ll adapt because I have to at the moment, but I’m not going to adopt this way of business.
Instead, I’m going to spend this time focusing on being better at connecting to myself and getting along with others in the spirit of excellence and professionalism. I’m going to get better at doing acceptance of others’ truths and speaking my own. I want to get better at building bonds through working hard together.
Let’s focus on connection.
Use this time to focus your efforts on being better at connection, being really good at serving your clients and being present for them. Let’s not lose handshakes and hugs, face to face hello’s and goodbye’s. Let’s focus on being better together in the same space, capable of connecting on a deep, personal level, both at home and with each other in our performance environments at work.
In these times of forced social distancing, it’s worth remembering the liberties we may have previously taken forgranted.
Let’s not get used to this.
And when this bloody thing is over, let’s do human connection in earnest, in our homes and in our workplaces, because I want to get better at just ‘being’ together.
