Is this the end of the handshake?
I’ve been having a lot of random thoughts recently, and a big one has been about when things start to get back to normal, or the ‘new normal’, as I think it’s safe to say a lot of things aren’t going to go back to the way they were. One of the big ones is the title of this blog – Is this the end of the handshake?
The history of the handshake dates back to the 5th century B.C. in Greece. It was a symbol of peace, showing that neither person was carrying a weapon. Although some say that the shaking gesture of the handshake started in Medieval Europe. Knights would shake the hand of others in an attempt to shake loose any hidden weapons.
Needless to say, it has evolved into a universal greeting throughout the modern world and is a staple of the business world. Could you imagine going to a meeting/interview without shaking hands with the other person? Although that may in fact become the new reality.
The coronavirus outbreak has taught us to be more conscious of hygiene than ever before in our lifetimes, wash your hands, sing happy birthday, use hand sanitiser – and repeat until your skin is drier than the Sahara Desert. Mindsets have been irreversibly changed, to the point where I really do think that in the ‘new normal’ the handshake will be frowned upon, and something else will come up in its place, but the question is what?
I was speaking to a contact who commutes a lot to London for meetings with his work, and he said this has made him realise that a lot of these meetings could be done over the phone or via video. Therefore, he is toying with the idea of charging clients who want to see him face to face if it involves a long commute, when phone or video is a perfectly reasonable and viable option. Really good idea I thought, it makes his time more productive and also reduces his carbon footprint.
There are loads of things that could potentially change, and one that I’m not sure I’m ready to talk about yet is pubs and clubs because it upsets me. But these are things we must endure before we come out the other side of this. I think we can all safely say that there are a lot of things we will no longer take for granted when this is all behind us.
Here at Jobwise we are still working from home with full access to our systems and databases, here to help if you need us. If you want to have a chat just get in touch, it doesn’t have to be about recruitment – you choose a topic!