So I’m back at work. I’ve had two weeks leave and skilfully managed to choose the two worst weeks of weather this summer! Seriously, I needed a break whilst the team break on furlough. Following twelve weeks of very full-on work, I’m not sure I had quite the holiday I needed. More time alone and in my home made switching off difficult. As did the incessant news and analysis that I kid myself I can’t afford to miss.
I have of course found some time to reflect between indoor DIY jobs. Wouldn’t it be brilliant to jump ahead ten years and look back at our individual, collective, sector and political decision-making at this time?
One of the things, with just a little perspective, that has surprised me, has been the speed with which words like ‘pivot’ and ‘Re-start’ started to abound. The glass half half full among us cling to the opportunity for life returning to our businesses and communities. The glass half empty contingent see too many reasons and anxieties and hold back.
Back then at the end of April I felt I knew too little to make big decisions, whilst recognising the psychological and financial reasons for doing so. Making some decisions was probably going to be better than making none at all.
What still surprises me among all the conversations of Re-starting and pivoting is how little talk there is of the health of our people. Not only has the case for employee engagement in the broadest sense never been higher, but doing so with compassion, empathy and honesty is surely non-negotiable. Our lives literally depend on it.