Work from Home Lessons – Should we keep doing these things?
If you listen to the Coronavirus/COVID-19 updates on the news, what you usually hear about are scary statistics and anxiety-causing prognostication. What usually gets pushed to the end of a news broadcast – if at all – is some positive by-product of this entire shelter in place, social distancing situation.
I’ve noticed a pattern of realizations that my clients and business colleagues have shared with me. I thought I’d compile a few here and see if you pick up on it, too.
“I haven’t slowed down this much since I don’t know when.”
“I’ve had dinner with my family every night for the past three weeks.”
“We haven’t enjoyed this much fun as a family in a long time. We’ve had game nights, movie nights, we talk. I can’t remember the last time we did that.”
“My husband and I have been enjoying couple time every evening. We might cook a nice dinner. Or we might stream a movie. Or we’ll take our dog for a walk. This is really great for our relationship.”
“We struggled for years to have kids yet it hasn’t been until now that we’ve spent so much quality time with them. That’s ridiculous! There’s no reason why I can’t be home on time for dinner. I’ve been working more efficiently than ever and getting the same amount of work done. And I’ve cooked meals. And we’ve had family time every single day. I need to remember this. I don’t want to go back to the old pace.”
“I think God did this to make us realize that we’ve got our priorities in the wrong places. We should’ve gotten our sh#t together a long time ago. It shouldn’t take worldwide death to make us want to take care of ourselves and our families.”
“I’ve experienced so much calm and peace in the last month. Even with all of this pandemic craziness, I’ve never felt this balanced. I have my work. I have my house responsibilities. I have family time. I cannot let this disappear. Somebody remind me I said this if I slip when we go back to normal. I don’t want that old normal.”
Did you pick up on the themes here? Self-care. Work-life balance. Family first. Relaxation.
If you feel the same way and want to remember these sentiments if you fall back into the rat-race ways when we open up again for work, bookmark this page so you can come back and remind yourself. We need to work to pay the bills – and hopefully you’re passionate about what you do. But passion or not, there’s more to life than just work.
