Of Children, Dogs, and Vacuum Cleaners

Below is an email that I sent to my organization yesterday. After part of it was read on a company webcast today, I’ve received a number of requests to post it on social media so I am sharing it here:

Over the past week or so, many of us have spent a lot of time in video meetings getting a small glimpse into each other’s homes.  The same homes where our significant others may be working and our children may be home from school.  Some of those homes are neat and some are, um, not so neat and many are shared with pets.  You may not know exactly what the protocol is for showing up on these calls, and I have heard that some of you find it stressful when your children interrupt you or your dog barks in the background, particularly if it is a video meeting with your management.

For me, the sound of a child or the bark of a dog, or even the disarray in the background, is a joy.  It is a piece of your life – of your humanity – brought into the frame, and I feel privileged to share it.  At any given time we all are juggling many things in our lives: working; raising children; caring for loved ones who are sick; running errands, and so much more.  During this unique time, we have asked many of you to take your work space into your home; do not feel that you have to keep your home out of that work space.

This coronavirus has stolen from us something essential that connects us as humans: the handshake; the hug; the kiss; the touch.  But while isolating ourselves physically, let’s redouble our efforts to connect with one another on the basis of our shared humanity.  Please do not feel that you need to banish the evidence of your life or feel stress when it intrudes into your work meetings.  Instead, let’s feel grateful to have been invited into each other’s homes virtually and rejoice in all that is going on in those homes because it is what we share as humans.

Stay well and stay connected.