Covid-19 and three pieces of advice

We all know that the Covid-19 pandemic is a historical event and will be remembered as one of the most tragic times of humankind. However, when I look back, at the beginning of it, I have to admit I had no idea of what was really coming down the road.

How everything has changed in our lives is unbelievable, to the point of being absurd. People have been impacted in different ways. Our health, our families, our relationships, our finances, our jobs, our houses, our hobbies... Each one differently, but we all have been impacted and we need to face it. Loss, doubts, fear, unease, anger, sadness, loneliness... Knowing how we feel and acknowledging what is happening to us is vital for ourselves. And it is also important for the people around us, since we all know that emotions are very contagious.

So my first advice, if you wish to take it, is: as in this disease, the first step to a cure, is to diagnose it. Therefore, no matter how strong you might look like, take a deep breath, look inside you and acknowledge what is going on and how you really are. It is almost impossible to be totally fine. Understanding yourself and taking care of yourself is not a selfish act, it is what makes it possible for you to even help others and spread better emotions. It starts with you. Be mindful of your feelings, and seek any help you might need. There are no super heroes.

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I recently read this article from Think with Google who sparked me with the idea that we are living both complexity and chaos. And that is why it is so difficult. Complexity was already there, but it accelerated with Covid.

And “chaos, by definition, means that things are ambiguous, unpredictable, and out of our control.”

What is going on is so crazy. For people who can work from home, as is my case, even if we can organize ourselves, sometimes “there are only so many hours in the day. Those hours do not add up to enough time for both adults to put in a normal workday while also parenting (and eating and sleeping every once in a while).” - just to give an example, from this New York Times article.

Or, as the same New York Times article goes on and simply puts: “This is not just a mere distraction that we can compartmentalize during the workday. No one should be expected to be able to focus on work as if everything were normal during a completely abnormal time. None of us can be ideal workers right now.”

This is what chaos means. A whole new world, where previous rules do not apply.

In a recent group session at work, a psychologist reminded us of something quite obvious, but important: in times like this, that there are things under your control and things totally out of your control. Those out of reach, let them be. There is no point in agonizing now for something we cannot do much about. But there is a great deal in our hands, and we need to focus on those things we can influence.

So my second advice, if you wish to take it, is: focus your energy on what you can control and what you can do to minimize the impact of this crisis. Be from a health perspective, economic or social. But do not try to overdo one versus the other. Find your priorities. Balance, as always, is key. A whole and integrated perspective is necessary, because we need to protect all our facets in life: parents, family members, friends, partners, leaders, employees, etc.

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In that same Think of Google article, the author points to: “The future will reward clarity and punish certainty.” That means clarity is key during times of chaos and complexity.

All leadership suggestions to deal with the crisis speak of communications, empathy, dealing with emotions, embracing change and so on. For me, I′d like to emphasize trust, dialogue and communications, and they all can reinforce one another. We all know how much people rely on their leaders and their companies to truly understand what is happening, as a way to go through this new reality where there is an excessive flow of data, information and even fake news.

So my third advice, if you wish to take it, is more focused on the corporate world: communicate, communicate, communicate. There is no over communication in times of crisis and chaos. If you communicate enough, you will convey clarity and it will help people navigate the chaos. It will not solve for it - but it will help. It is not about certainty, because it does not exist in chaotic times. It is about open, true, honest communications. Do not hide the game. Help people understand what is going on. And according to trust equations/ theory, this will help build trust; and people will need to trust each other in this chaos. 

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These three pieces of advice are just my humble offering at this moment, deriving from personal experience. Let′s keep sharing, learning from each other and supporting ourselves. As they say, “together we are stronger”!