Easter is the perfect time for hope and a new beginning

When I was a little girl growing up in rural Indiana, I remember filing in behind my mom and dad on Easter Sunday to take our seats on one of the long, wooden pews of Parker United Methodist Church. The small sanctuary was always filled with fragrant white lilies. Royal purple draperies hung from the preacher’s pulpit and a few drying fronds remained scattered on the altar left over from Palm Sunday’s service the week before.

Dressed in our finest shades of pastel, the congregation would stand together in song, invariably resounding the famous American Easter anthem, “Christ Arose”. Written in 1874 by Robert Lowry when he was a pastor in Pennsylvania, it remains one of the most popular of the dozens of hymns he composed, a staple of many Easter services to this day. I can still recall every word. The opening verse sets a grim scene of anticipation, “Low in the grave he lay…waiting the coming day…” The stirring chorus celebrates life restored after enduring harrowing adversity, “Up from the grave he arose!”

The recollection of that annual collective observation of renewal and rebirth is more vivid than my flickering memories of various Easter baskets full of pink plastic grass, chocolate eggs and bunnies. It was the real-life, springtime version of Dr Suess’s whimsical Whos of Whoville gathering on Christmas Day to rejoice.

As we continue to wait the coming day when we will freely and triumphantly arise back into our life and work, I can think of no better time than Easter to imagine what that re-emergence may look like.

1.) We will celebrate smaller moments

In the halcyon days before Covid, when people worked in offices and WFH were not three letters we all knew the meaning of, I attended a company-wide town hall meeting. The employees were required to convene in a local hotel conference room in the morning. Before taking their seats, they helped themselves to scones and the accompanying jam, cream and butter set out on the buffet table lining one of the room’s walls.

I was there as a consultant, asked to observe and critique how engaging each of the senior leadership team members were as they delivered presentations before the employees. Unfortunately, the atmosphere was flat. Employees shifted in their seats in boredom, quietly picking at their scones while team leaders droned unenthusiastically about whatever they were talking about.

The only time there was even a hint of energy in the room was when the HR Director announced that the first Friday of every month would see cake arriving in the breakroom to celebrate birthdays. There was an audible sigh of relief and even a bit of laughter, as the audience zeroed on the one bit of cheer in the event.

Fast forward to the first in-person town-hall meeting of our re-emergence. I hope we take cheer and appreciation in every tiny thing. Employees scooting to the edge of their seats, learning forward, thrilled to be sitting next to colleagues they have only seen through video for so long and delighted to actively listen to their leaders. Leaders, who in turn, are striving to be compassionate and caring in their delivery.

2.) We will re-commence commuting

To attend those future, in-person town halls, I imagine we will welcome the chance to drive, cycle or take transit. In the same way my recently vaccinated mom and stepdad have been enjoying getting out of their home to visit their favourite Indiana restaurants nearly every evening since they got the all-clear (and Facetiming me with enviable videos of their dining activities), we too, will be zooming out of our homes to meet colleagues when we are freed from Zoom.

For instance, in Sydney, where vaccination distribution and contract tracing are widespread, and electronic methods provide contactless check-ins of employees, customers and visitors, offices are close to going back to capacity and streets are nearly full again of commuters. An Irish friend of mine who is living there says wearing masks on public transportation is no longer mandatory. You can actually see people smiling at each other from inside cars and buses. 

3.) We will relish face-to-face collaborating

Coming together will result in greater collaboration opportunities. This is a critical activity that has surely been missed. Case in point, a client works for a multi-national security company headquartered here in Ireland where, of course, everyone continues to WFH. He reports that over the past year productivity has mostly remained steady. I say “mostly” because interestingly this is the case for every department expect one: patents. The people in this important division are described as “twiddling their thumbs.” People are not meeting and organically brainstorming. “Inventions and Innovations are way down.”

In a separate story, a young person in her first job since graduating from college last year says she’s dying to meet “anyone at work”. Like so many others, she was recruited, interviewed and completed her training all online. The only person she has met in her new firm is her direct manager. She has never, ever, been into her office. She doesn’t even know what it feels like to hang out in the breakroom on any ordinary day, let alone celebrate a teammate’s birthday over cake in the canteen.

I can’t even imagine the dreams of inter-personal collaboration that she must have. Most people are wanting to go back into the workplace. We are ready to commute, collaborate and celebrate.

Easter also reminds us of hope. Let’s hold on to that.

Fortune 500 executive coach, trainer and speaker, write to Gina in care of [email protected] or right here on Linked In

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