My Covid-versary

March 11, 2020. That was the day I left the office in Atlanta driving home to Tuscaloosa. My boss sent me an email that night advising unexpectedly that we would work remote indefinitely. I haven't been back to the office in a year. One. Year. #WFH. That week in March last year was when we all began to understand this pandemic was "for real" with business closures, stay-at-home orders, vacations and conferences canceled, masks mandated, and church services held remotely.

A trained risk manager, I never anticipated something like this. Anybody that says they did is not being totally forthcoming. All of us have had our lives adjusted and, as I have likened it, lived in a parallel universe the last year. Yes, we're doing many of the same things we did before. But there is no handshake or hug, no lack of concern about being closer than six feet to a distant relative, co-worker, or client, and for many of us no regularly going to the office, to the movies, or to church.

Of course, pre-pandemic I often longed for the ability to work from home. Once it started I realized it would take some getting used to! I've adjusted and my team has as well. Our National Commercial Services title insurance group out of Atlanta has around 50 people. About 5 of those have continued to work in the office to receive important real estate closing documents and then process them, scan them, and have them recorded at courthouses. The rest of us have come to this strange new realization: we are achieving all the same things at home we did in the office. We miss the collegiality of our co-workers for sure, but our collaboration for underwriting title coverage and coordinating closings has shifted to Microsoft Teams, continued email, and that old-fashioned invention - the telephone (it still works and it's good to talk to people!)

Starting my second year at home, what do I think will happen next for #WFH? Will our office operations return to what they were in early March 2020? I subscribe to the Rick Blaine plan: "I never make plans that far in advance." Honestly I just don't know what will happen. But I plan to do it safely and efficiently. I don't have my vaccine yet (and aren't lawyers the least concern of all people??!!) but my wife does and all our parents do, so we're thankful. I know I'm ready to go to church safely, eat out with abandon, travel the world, and see my children experience the things the last year has made difficult.

For our Company it was the best year ever for Fidelity National Title Group. So much ended up happening in the real estate market no one expected. Residential shot through the roof and Commercial survived with a 1% increase in closed orders. Everyone found a way to get it done. That resiliency is what makes working in this industry great.

For now, I'll continue trying to be the Encourager-in-Chief for our #CRE title insurance industry, underwrite fascinating deals from my home office, and get to take regular walks daily with my pandemic dog Bean, now 1-year-old. This one thing I do know: I'm over the pandemic and ready for a return to whatever normal is supposed to be!