Notes from the Coalmine - March 13th

UPDATE: A hospital in Seattle area has sent out a note to staff suspending elective surgery and warning that "our local COVID-19 trajectory is likely to be similar to that of Northern Italy." The hospital is down to a four-day supply of gloves.

Over the past few days I've been really working hard to keep busy with work related stuff. We have a great many customers who are in need of ramping up addition WFH (work from home) end user licenses. My team - a GREAT TEAM btw - has been been really on top of the ball.

Parallels WFH practice was pretty well established BEFORE the virus hit. For those of you who have followed my the "sales related" writings here on LinkedIn, you may remember my philosophy on WFH was simply this:

There are two types of sales reps out there - those who I can trust to work from home and those who won't be working for me.

And over the past few years, we've built a team of the former and we don't have any of the latter around to worry about.

We also have a daily stand up Skype meeting during this next month or so - a Temperature Check if you will - but not only a BUSINESS TEMP check.

A personal one.

We ask each other if we're all "ok." We inquire about each other's health, each other's families, We talk about the news. We swap stories we're heard or talk about things we've experienced.

We complain about the government.

We crack jokes about what people say on TV.

We laugh.

We have to do this. Not for business. Not even for our own peace of mind.

We do it for each other.

It's no surprise - to anyone that's human - that during times of crisis, human beings band together. We embrace. We hold each other. We cry together. We wipe each other's tears and we move forward, hand in hand.

It's in our DNA.

Think of any natural disaster - any earthquake or typhoon. There's always people coalescing in groups to comfort and support each other.

But COVID-19 takes that away from us.

To fight the virus, we are being asked NOT to do the one thing we're programmed to do in times of crisis - come together

Instead we are being asked to ISOLATE.

We are being asked to self quarantine.

We are being told we need to separate ourselves from the people who could comfort us.

And this makes us feel that we have to go though this alone.

This is why technology is so very important in this national emergency.

We have to use technology to keep tabs on each other. Using texting and skype and gotomeeting and (OMG) PHONE CALLS to connect with our co-workers and friends is important in this time of national crisis.

And while everyone is important, we should keep an pay special attention to:

• People we know in abusive relationships: Social distancing and WFH means people who may find working 8-10 hours of respite a day from an abusive partner now are forced into the worst of all possible situations - alone with their abuser during a crisis. If you know of anyone in this situation, please reach out and let them know you're there for them. If this freaks you out or you think need you help figuring out a way to help your co-workers in this situation, reach out the the National Domestic Violence Hotline.
• Older people : Our older co-workers need special attention. We need to make sure we're reaching out to them regularly. Here in my neck of the woods, a 60 year old Legal Secretary passed away from the virus. She felt bad last Friday, worked from work until Tuesday, WFH on Wednesday and was found dead yesterday. If you have older co-workers, please make sure they'll handling everything ok. And if they're not feeling well, and they don't have anyone at home, please help them get to a doctor -especially if they're over 60.
• Single People: Sure, I know the old joke. "Whenever someone says they're quitting to 'spend time with family' I know that's crap - because I have a family and I work to stay away from them!" But in these times of self sequestration, the people in our homes are really the only ones we're talking to every day. A single person - who usually depends on events, concerts, ballgames, bars and other social meeting places to interact with people - may now be sitting alone with the the TV on, worrying about what comes next. Call them - text them. Play Fortnite with them - whatever! If it's possible and you feel safe doing so, invite them over. Dip them in Purell at the door if you need to. You know what's great? A bike ride! I would assume every major city has about 82% less cars on the road. Maybe a 20 mile bike ride is just what the doctor ordered for your single co-worker!

Here's the thing - the news? It's pretty grim.

We've just declared a National Emergency and here in Washington State - all schools are closed until AT LEAST April 24th. The CDC is saying that may not be long enough - school just might be over this year.

And if we're being realistic, we know here in the Coalmine that it's going to get worse before it gets better. The whole point of social distancing is not to STOP the virus - that's no longer an option. It's to spread out the infections so the U.S. health care system isn't stretched to the breaking point. Italy, with — as of early Thursday — 12,462 confirmed COVID-19 cases and 827 deaths, is a stark example of what can happen when the epidemiological tidal wave breaks hard.

Health Care system capacity is the thing we NEED to be talking about. Social distancing keeps the # of cases lower - which allows health care worker to take care of the sickest of the sick. All those media questions about "do we have ventilators" you're hearing all the politicians ignore is about keeping us in the GREY above and keeping us out of the pink!

But it's not ALL grim - people and orgs are stepping up.

With all these kids being home, there's a new Seattle startup Weekdays wants to help parents during coronavirus outbreak. Great idea!

Also, many Seattle area restaurants are moving to a to-go/delivery/no contact business model. This keeps people employed AND keeps other people FED. A two-fer!

And everyone's favorite nerd here in Seattle, Bill Gates, funded a program that will soon offer home-testing kits for new coronavirus!

So that's the news from your friendly neighborhood canary. Let me know how you're doing in this New Normal. I'll be here - I'm not planning on going anywhere for the foreseeable future.

AND WASH YOUR HANDS!!!!!