Series 1 (11/24) "Connecting in a Disconnected World"

As we continue to hunker down in our homes, the number one thing our locked-down world is learning is what makes us most human – each other. Interaction is so fundamental to the very state of being human that we take it for granted. That is, until we’re suddenly deprived of it almost overnight and thrust into an isolation experiment of global proportions. 

COVID-19 is testing the body to its limits, but it is also testing the spirit. On an individual level the strain can feel great, and we’re all finding out just how much we miss family and friends. But human connections matter to our teams too. Team leaders everywhere are wrestling with how to create cohesiveness and foster culture remotely – tasks that are hard enough to accomplish when everyone is present and accounted for in the office.

So, for those teambuilders and home-workers out there, here are some suggestions of how you can stay connected and keep morale high. 

Stay in the moment but look ahead too. Leaders will have to strike a balance between helping their team members stay in the ‘now’ so they don’t feel overwhelmed by the great uncertainties that are out there. But showing them that youbelieve in the future is vital to their belief that they can get through this. I’ve heard of one manager who is doing this by getting his team to re-imagine their offering. How do they want to better serve their customers? How do they want to re-design buildings, uniforms? He’s even got them planning celebrations for customers when the service opens up again, post-Corona. He’s inspiring them to believe in an even better future while they deal with this strange day-to-day.

Know your team, and yourself. Now’s the time for leaders to dig out their team’s personality inventory. Remind yourself about their introvert/extrovert preferences and other traits. Do your introverts need drawing out more, one-to-one with you, to find out how they are really coping? Do your extroverts need lots of team interaction? Of course, you have to ask them individually what they feel they need, but refreshing your understanding of their personality means you can be prepared to offer them the right help. Take some time also to check-in with yourself. How mindful are you of your own behaviour? And how is that behaviour impacting on others?

Share. It’s never been more important to build in a team habit of gratitude and sharing. Finish each day/week with everyone sharing what they are grateful for. Maybe do an exercise where the team share what they value about each other – ‘what I really value about Sally/Henry is…….’ And share some home life too – who doesn’t love a baby or cat held up to the camera? What goofy stuff are your kids up to that might make co-workers laugh? For those co-workers isolating alone, this feeling of family could be invaluable. Sharing builds empathy which will make your team stronger in the long-run.

Help others. It’s often said that the best way to help ourselves is to help others. Maybe now’s the time for the team to choose a charity or community project to help. Find out if your local hospital, care homes or foodbank need help you can give remotely. Getting the team involved can focus everyone on thinking of others – the best way to stop obsessing about ourselves. You will soon see that kindness and compassion is incredibly energizing for all.

Purpose, purpose, purpose. Above all your job as leader is to keep the purpose alive. Now’s the ideal time to re-connect with the ‘team soul’. What are you trying to accomplish in the world and what needs to change so you can serve your purpose better in the future? How can you go the extra mile for your customers now when they are hurting too? How can you surprise and delight them now and when you return to normality? At this moment, for all of us, purpose is king. It allows us to strip away all the non-essential ‘stuff’ that may have accumulated over time.

This time can be an unexpected gift for leaders – a reset button to enable us to work with our teams in a more meaningful way, emerging with a strengthened sense of connectedness and a culture that can thrive under any circumstances.