We had a family quiz on Zoom on Easter Sunday. We’ve never done this and no-one has ever suggested it before either, so it’s all down to the lockdown. My husband put his hand up to be quizmaster and so spent Easter Saturday going through old magazines and newspapers to get the questions sorted. We had family online from across the UK as well as New Zealand and Dubai and we spent a brilliant couple of hours answering questions on sport and the Kardashians, helped along by tea, gin or wine, depending on the time zone.
Image by GLopezR, Pixabay
It didn’t really matter (to me anyway) who won (I didn’t by the way); it was the taking part and seeing everyone that felt important. We were all safe, well and having a laugh. Some of us were more locked down than others (Dubai) and others have more scenic daily walks (New Zealand, UK east and south coast) and sharing our stories felt like it helped us all. In all the change we’ve had in the last four weeks, the comfort of familiar faces and human connection, even though it was through a screen, was great.
Checking-in – new norms?
This weekly quiz is now on my list of check-ins. I’ve been checking-in with other family much more regularly since this whole thing started - every one is online, rather than on the phone so we can see one another. I’m checking-in with clients (even if I’m not working with them right now) as well as with friends and work colleagues more often as well too, as much for my need for human connection as theirs. These check-ins are different from our usual chats. We seem to be having more honest conversations about how we’re feeling and even if we’re coming out with ‘I’m fine,” when we’re first asked, the conversation that follows is usually very different to ‘fine’. Very un-British and very welcome.
If you’re in an organisation and you, your workmates and your teams aren’t used to working virtually, check-ins make a big difference. I know some folk are still massively busy and it might not feel like you have time to catch up but it really does help you as much as it helps them.
It might feel (logically) as though things have moved on from the initial crisis stage we were all facing in the first couple of weeks of lockdown. Many organisations have dealt with the upfront challenges of deciding how they continue business (redundancies, furloughing, setting up virtual teams, redirecting employees to new roles or pivoting their business focus among many actions) and they are likely now be looking at the next, practical steps.
But, along with the practical considerations, comes a whole heap of emotions tied up with each of these change scenarios, and people will need support. Being open, and helping others be open makes a huge difference.
Authenticity will really matter
This is a period for organisations, where values, culture and purpose are really coming to life – or not. I’ll be looking at this in my next few posts. The next few weeks will still be uncertain – in the UK there’s debate about when lock-down might be lifted, people are preoccupied with applying for financial support and no-one, anywhere, really knows what the future will look like. Added to which, whenever we do start to return to some form of normality, people will be fundamentally changed by this experience and that will impact how we all work in future, even in the next few months. Organisations will need to be prepared to support this, even if it’s not clear right now what that might look like. Even starting to think about what support might be needed, will help.
In the meantime, everyone will continue to be a bit scared and uncertain as we keep struggling to make sense of what’s happening and keep trying to create some control and order into what we’re doing.
If we can’t be authentic in this situation, including with our work colleagues, then we’re going to create a whole load more stress for ourselves. Putting on a front takes up a huge amount of energy when most of us already have a lot of underlying anxiety going on.
If you can encourage your colleagues and team members to be themselves at work, even in a virtual environment, this will help massively. And it will start by you being authentic too. As you might do in an office, offer to be available if people want to chat. Try to get to know people better. Ask your colleagues, peers and team members about their families and their hobbies. They are more likely to be open about what’s worrying them and in turn, help them focus better. If your manager isn’t checking-in with you, ask them for a chat – they may be struggling just as much as you are.
This includes leaders too. If you’re a leader, ask for help if you need it and don’t feel like you’re on your own. You are going to have concerns just like everyone else and you can’t help others if you don’t have your own oxygen mask in place.
Wouldn’t it be brilliant if one of the great things to come out of this crisis, alongside my family quiz, would be more workplace cultures where people – including leaders – feel they can speak openly about their concerns, especially in times of change, and not feel judged?