Can You Work Well In The Midst Of A Pandemic? Yes. Here's How.
Yesterday, the WHO declared the novel coronavirus an official pandemic - which means a disease that has gone worldwide.
It’s a new world in so many ways. Here at MatchPace, we’re going to stay in our lane and not postulate on epidemiology or how the government should respond. Instead, we want to talk about how to work well and live well in the face of a pandemic.
Figuring out a new way to work, practically overnight, is a huge challenge.
No matter how high performing your team is, it’s challenging to know how to maintain high performance while making room for all the new challenges people are facing. Teleworking while children are off from school? Taking care of sick loved ones? Just the draw of the endless news cycle that keeps pulling our attention from our work, despite our best intentions?
Our first recommendation is, if you haven’t already: communicate with your team! And your clients! Share what you know, and what your plan is, and why your plan might change. Explain that you’ll be trying out some new things in the coming weeks, and that it’s a new opportunity to lean into your team.
Over the next week, we’re going to put out a series of blog posts and give you some suggestions on the following topics (Keep an eye on our LinkedIn page for the posts). We’ll cover:
How to set - and communicate about - your pace. What does your team really need to be able to collaborate and synergize, and what *don’t* you need? If you haven’t formally articulated your organization’s pace, now is a good time to do that.
Telework policies and telework management. Don’t assume employees will easily be able to replicate their typical workday at home–some things may need to change, like methods of communication and frequency of (remote) meetings. Managing teleworkers is different than managing in-person workers. Start to learn about the difference, and think about how you want to handle this.
Many organizations are allowing employees to work from home or finding other arrangements to mitigate the potential spread of the virus. As you devise some new ways of working, keep an eye on which accommodations are temporary and which could be permanent. There are lots of people with differing abilities who need accommodations on a regular basis (e.g. for whom getting on public transportation every day is a challenge). How can you set a pace that allows your organization to continue it’s good work while also giving your team what they need to stay safe and healthy?
Think about [all categories of] your neighbors, and be a good neighbor:
What do your colleagues need to stay productive and healthy?
What about your actual physical neighbors?
The people whose job it is to serve you: literal servers at restaurants, your baristas at the coffee shop–how can you help take care of them right now knowing a pandemic could affect their livelihood? Tipping better? A gift card for groceries?
How to manage the different ways people process challenges - some like to talk a lot, some like to keep talking to a minimum to keep their angst down. As an organizational leader, understand that people may be distracted by this new and confusing space we find ourselves in.
Anxiety is contagious too
We want to help you use this situation–regardless of how it materializes in your community–as a learning experience. How can you make sure you are prepared professionally and personally for any kind of crisis? Does your organization have processes and procedures in place to handle a disruption? Do you offer policies like paid sick leave that enable sick workers to stay home? In our increasingly connected world, we can turn to new ways of working to both protect our organizations from crisis as well as boost effectiveness when it’s “business as usual.”
It is possible to work well and live well–even in the midst of a situation like the coronavirus. Don’t fail to plan and prepare today so you can protect yourself, your team, and your organization. If you want to talk more about this - click here to schedule a free consultation call!