COVID & In-Person Events

There is something called the Small Business Expo here in Miami, Florida. It comes twice to our shores and embeds a fabric into the Intercontinental Hotel's repertoire, but it has not been around for some time. Then again, as I sit down to write this, I am beginning to realize that I cannot think of the last time I was at an in-person networking event.

A Moment Of History

Before we progress into the discussion, I want to point out that The Small Business Expo is not the only conference that has disappeared since we all migrated to Zoom and other platforms (which really still only includes Zoom, as there are no other platforms, which is a strange conundrum I'll feed on at a later point).

According to Ray A. Smith at WSJ says :

"Networking-starved professionals are returning to in-person luncheons and live conventions, organizers say, with meetings of local chambers of commerce and national industry events back on the calendars as COVID-19 cases fall."

It is no secret, and the above is still a hopeful "maybe."

COVID obviously destroyed a lot we once had: networking events, packed parties, concerts (which have declined in brevity by 49 percent since COVID), and more. We are now beginning to return to normal. Or, so we think. You see, there is something about virtual events that people seem to have grown rather fond of. Perhaps it was the isolation and social distancing, leading us all to an unresponsive expression and an oxygen-deprived brain, but it is a fact that virtual networks are the new "in." I just joined one called the "Master Network," which is no master, but still worth mentioning.

This Isn't About COVID

It is about climate. With networking events now returning to their normal selves, we may be able to return to the in-person experience, but the question remains: can a virtual event (or meeting, or networking session) truly capture the same experience as an in-person one? Is there something I am missing, or did COVID destroy our "in-person" selves? Have we regressed in mindset to the point where even now, we cannot quite transition back to the old ways? This is not so much an article about networking events, though it may appear to be.

The truth is, COVID-19 left a lot of us in mental "crisis mode," and thus, we need to be able to trust one-another as we cross this threshold back to older times. The virtual meeting can never replace the atmosphere of an in-person networking event. I recall many in Miami Beach, about a half-hour drive in the midst of the wallowed night. They were so engaging; there is nothing like grabbing a cold beer and talking to other entrepreneurs about what is going on in their lives. That feeling goes for concerts, and (you guessed it) grandchildren.

Loving Your Grandkids

My grandmother is the perfect example of a woman who loves her family. Her grandchildren are her life, but she has not seen them in person for years. If my grandma cannot see her own grandchildren in person, what about those of us who are doing it for business purposes? Networking events are an atmospheric catalyst for the human condition. I wrote in a previous article about the psychology of anthropology and how we all need actual close-quarter communication to survive. If you did not read it, I'll review...

People have something called: "pheromones."

Take this example from WebMD.com:

"We found that human beings communicate with each other with pheromones, just like any terrestrial animal," study co-author David L. Berliner, MD, told WebMD in April. "And they do it through the same organ that all these terrestrial animals have, which is a vomeronasal organ, which all human beings have."

So, if we can think about this for a second, we are looking at a study proving that human contact (known to increase oxytocin levels, which are responsible for bonding and connecting on a chemical level) actually is communicated through smell.

Wow.

That leads us to our point of the day: are we backtracking by remaining virtual? If human beings are hardwired internally to require physical (not virtual) human contact, why are virtual events still the best way to go? I cannot find any studies on this, but I can guess: we find them easier. The comfort of our homes and offices has become second nature.

It is almost as if COVID did more than just destroy an economy; it also destroyed human connection. Though we see the numbers dwindling down and immunizations slowly kicking in, it may be time (theoretically, and do not take this as a COVID-19 debate; I don't want to argue about this) to return to the "in-person" atmosphere we require as a part of the human condition. Long story short: networking events are slowly returning, but I have found something rather interesting when looking into this.

It seems almost as if we are not stuck with virtual events.

Is It Safety Or Laziness?

I think there is a vast forum for this question. What is causing us to digress away from COVID-19's slowly-ending grace? Are we all avoiding in-person events and conventions and conferences and so on, so forth, because we are trying to play it safe? Or, are we doing it because we have become accustomed to it? I will not debate safety. I do agree that the more we social distance, the more we isolate ourselves from the human experience.

Recall the discussion of pheromones. We need these to bond, to communicate, and to form lasting relationships. These chemicals (or "hormones" in this case) are responsible for the psychological environment we need as human beings to survive. Though we may not realize it now, take a look at what has happened since COVID. Did the virus start the war, or did it simply lead us into a pattern of pragmatic and ethereal laziness? It's a lot easier to join a Zoom meeting than waking up, showering, getting dressed, fixing our hair (in my case, figuring out how to apply the perfect amount of gel) and hitting the road.

So are we faltering into a new realm of attributable distance?

Why We Need Human Contact

Human beings (as stated in a previous article by me ) need connection. We need social contact to regulate our internal atmospheres. When we fail to meet in-person, we lose out on the true hormonal experience. As a Psych major going into Marketing come August of this year (yay for FIU and its Masters Program!), I have spent four-and-a-half years in my Bachelor's, and I have only one thing to say here: we need social contact to bond.

What online networking sessions and events are missing is this fact. Human beings are social creatures. Even those of us who think we are introverted require some form of social stimulation to survive. This is just human nature, and it goes for almost every other species of creature or specimen around. We communicate with body language 55 percent more effectively than words; we require human contact to receive oxytocin, responsible for forming close bonds. In fact, is is theorized that 80 percent of human sociality is based on (you guessed it) chemical functions! So, why are we still sitting in the virtual hemisphere?

What's Coming Next

I feel we have lost touch with our human counterparts. If we can isolate the variables correctly, it is clear that for our society to survive, we need to return to the in-person experience. Though we can laze onward with Zoom meetings (which, in retrospect, are well over ten times easier to organize than an in-person event, where one must rent a venue, set up tables and atmospherics, and - of course - to shower before our meeting), I feel that we have let safety overpower us, and now the laziness is irreversible.

Does this mean it is wise to risk in-person events? I understand more than anyone else (considering I still wear a mask when I leave the house) that this is a rough time for all of us. We are sitting on the death bed of the COVID-19 pandemic, and though it continues to slow, I am in no way insinuating that we should risk our health or safety. I am simply pointing out a crucial argument: are in-person events dead, and if so, what does this imply?

Are we doing this to be safe, or are we doing this because we are lazy? FIU, as an example is where I grew up. I was an Event Coordinator for two Honors Societies (student organizations that meet for socialization and intellectual stimulation) for two years, and I was elected to plan them. This is a man who cannot even set the dinner table, so I really had no choice but to learn how to put these things together without breaking the bank. I learned all about the power of putting together powerful events! It is a fun experience, but the past two years have taken a toll on all of us. We were forced to migrate to Zoom meetings.

The Problem Is...

…we have not migrated back.

In this sense, is it a matter of safety from COVID-19 that is leading us away from in-person experiences, or is it just something we are now accustomed to? Are we being lazy for not trying, or are we just entering a new world where Zoom dominates the social experience? I would like to add here that this is my personal opinion. I am in no way, shape or form saying to risk your safety. I am merely saying that we may have drifted from human instinct, and the question remains: are we doing this because we are being safe, or just lazy?

In Conclusion

In conclusion, we need to take a jump forward. However, with certain social distancing and COVID-19 prevention measures still amidst, we may be drifting in the wrong direction. Will the human experience begin to alter on a molecular level, where online meetings dominate our world? Furthermore, what are we missing when we skip the in-person event and choose to laze onward into a Zoom meeting that, in my opinion, can never replace the human-to-human experience? Are we losing ourselves here, or is there still potential for us to return back to our social roots? I guess only time will tell...

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