This moment we live in is unprecedented, and yet, each moment we live always has been. Crises have a way of magnifying the fact that the way we live today matters, for each of us and for each other.
In light of the COVID-19 Pandemic, the world waits for a way forward; some people in anticipation, all in uncertainty and many with great fear. Without question the current circumstance requires our attention, our discernment, and our careful response in leadership.
People are scared. Some of us are navigating the waters of this pandemic with immune systems that are compromised, some of us are aging and fall within the highest risk categories of this virus. Others have reason to feel terror in the face of social isolation; perhaps they’ve already experienced enough.
We all face new realities regardless of where we come from and today is our moment.
Through the generations we have seen people overcome extreme odds to create new realities for others. For example, we call them “The Greatest Generation” because they persevered through the Great Depression and World War II. And while this pandemic is nothing like either of those circumstances, this moment presents our opportunity to respond well.
The question is not what will happen. We can only estimate. The question is what will you do?
When we look back on this moment, no one will remember what events they missed, or parties that were cancelled. No one will recall the few church services they had to attend online or missing their favorite booth at the restaurant on date night. We will remember who provided calm, resilient leadership while others panicked.
If we do this right, we will remember how we found one another, again, amidst a world drifted into loneliness.
With an economic market plummeting and fluctuating, the two greatest commodities we can trade in today are hope and connection. In such moments of adversity, these may very well be the two greatest gifts we can give to one another. Make no mistake, they will cost you something.
The cost of hope is disciplined thoughts and actions. We are all in the people business because we are all people. Organizations are the sum total of people and exist to serve...people! We settle into thought processes and philosophical paradigms influenced by our experiences and our hard wiring. You are who you are, fighting this is like trying to tie a rope in a tornado, but hope can be exercised and developed.
This situation is real, and real scary. Maybe not for you, but certainly for others in your sphere of influence. For the sake of our children, our spouses, our friends, our families and our teammates, take your thoughts captive when they fearfully run away from you. Be validated in the fact that what you are experiencing is real. Yet cinch your thought life down and walk with faithful resolve.
It is ok to admit that you’re scared, it is not ok to spread your fear to those counting on you.
What we know today will change as rapidly as what we knew seven days ago. You cannot control that. You can control your response. A smile in the face of panic can do wonders to stabilize relationships. A calm word to our children can change their day while cooped up in the house. A bag of groceries on your elderly neighbor’s doorstep could save their life.
Check your source of hope. Does it hold up to your present circumstances? Challenge that as you navigate these waters. Our greatest discoveries and growth are found at the edge of adversity.
The cost of connection is your expectations on the way it should be. Ironically we live in an age of extreme social isolation to begin with. Sure, we all look perfect and connected on social media, but we all know it’s not real. We exist on digital islands, connected by a vast sea of social media and technological infrastructure.
We need each other. We are made for relationships, for touch and face-to-face connection. While imperfect, in this moment we have the opportunity to build bridges across these islands and use social media and technology for their intended purposes: to connect us. Like no other time in history, we are uniquely prepared to shelter in place.
Host a Google Hangout with your family, your coworkers, your community group or your friends and check in on each other. Is it perfect? No. Is it functional? Yes! Especially when we cannot hug one another or extend a warm handshake. The alternative to action is far worse than a few awkward moments on a call coaching your seventy year old mother on how to use Zoom (sorry mom)!
Leaders, if we are unwilling to flex to the time in this way, we sacrifice progress for perfection and we will hit the wall. In this way, the cost is far greater than the way it should be. The cost is losing our people and today more than ever that is a cost we cannot bear. We need one another. One imperfect opportunity to connect is better than another moment slipped by in silence.
Leave your expectations at the door you’re sheltered behind and open up the window to the world in your laptop.
We will get through this, though we will sacrifice along the way. Many of us feel the pain now as we lay off staff, furlough teams or receive notifications that our job has just been eliminated. Our hearts are with you.
Whatever unit of function you are leading right now, be that your family, your business, your team, yourself, and/or your community the very worst thing you can be right now is silent. Imperfect as it is, may we live our moment today in the face of great adversity by engaging in hopeful connection during this season in isolation.
As for us, we’ll embrace and enjoy family time now especially in comparison to the typical busyness of un-quarantined life. May we all learn to find each other again, one game night, one video call, one puzzle, one bag of groceries and one bucket of popcorn and a movie at a time.
Oh, and on that note, please relax on the toilet paper already! Peace.