Families. Families Everywhere.

Whilst out on my government sanctioned "one run a day" this morning, I couldn't help but be lifted by what I saw - parents with their kids on bikes, couples running together or walking their dogs (and everyone respectfully observing social distance so please hold off on the shaming). Though I was also taken by the spirit of those I saw, all smiles, waving at strangers, a real feeling of a community trying to bond in whatever way they could.

And it's been very much the same during working hours, obviously it's extremely difficult to balance the needs of your employer with the demands of your children, though from what I can tell, everyone is doing their absolute best to make it work.

Of all the things that I've come to understand about this situation, is that it really is a golden opportunity to reconnect to those immediately around us. I'm not spending that hour on the train every morning, so instead I can take a breath, get out in to the garden and run around with my two sons, aged 4 and 7. The home schooling is harder to manage, though it's been a real lesson in getting scrappy. Making dens under the table for reading, creating ad hoc games with a ball and roll of masking tape, devising points systems that test their maths skills. I'm determined not to waste this opportunity, and to make it as much of an adventure as possible.

I've also been pleased with how my employer, Taboola, has responded. We may not be as vulnerable as friends in other industries, but we are far from immune to what is potentially coming. We're taking active steps now to assess how we can weather any storms, and we have total transparency from the top down - each week our CEO and COO co-host a company all hands call, where after a short presentation they open the floor up to questions from anyone, about anything. I really couldn't ask for much more from them right now.

Taboola has changed enormously in the time that I have worked there, and recently I happened upon a reminder of just how much. Clearing out an old draw I found this dongle (pictured). It dates from early 2013, when we moved in to our new office and discovered that the internet and phone systems weren't going to be ready for another two weeks. At that point you really did have to drop everything and start solving the problem immediately in front of you!

As we've grown I've found myself missing some of that early start up hustle. Well, I guess I should have been careful what I wished for! We are right back in that mindset, and all ideas are up for discussion with submissions being taken in a company wide initiative. It doesn't matter if you're a tenured VP of R&D or a fresh new intern - we want to hear from you. Every voice counts, every idea matters - dig deep, get scrappy, unburden yourself from the "that's how we do it" thought process and shoot for the moon.

My team is helping to create content to support the organisation in this abrupt transition, and next week we'll be releasing a monthly pulse survey. Primarily to understand how everyone is doing, though also to gather feedback about what is working well and what needs improvement. Optimisation will be key as we all adjust to this new normal.

Historically, I've struggled with and written about my relationship with depression and anxiety, and I've no shame in admitting that last week was tough, really tough. Thankfully, these days I have much more robust methods with which to identify with these feelings, meditation being a huge help. Though I think we should all be compassionate with ourselves on how we're individually processing the current situation, there is no right way to feel about this.

It's clear that we're in this for the long haul, but let's not lose sight of what we can do about it - for me it's going to be enjoying that family time and getting scrappy again!

Good luck and stay safe, we'll get through this.