In This Together

After 60 days of isolation, my teenage daughter had her first social distancing visit. She and her friend sat 15 feet apart in the front yard and talked for 2 hours. While they would have been able to do the same thing over FaceTime, she felt the in person visit was more enjoyable.

Feeling bad that my pre-teen son was still isolated, I asked him if he would be able to sit in a chair 15 feet from a friend and talk for 2 hours. He said, “Mom, we could run around and play tag, with really long sticks.” Clearly the idea of a social distancing get together means different things to different people. As you prepare to open your workplaces it is important to ask your team what a safe work environment looks like. How do they imagine safely executing their duties and interacting with each other?What are they afraid of? How do they plan on interacting with clients and customers and what do they do/say when someone is making them feel uncomfortable? What conduct will change and how? These were always questions we should have been asking, but now it is acceptable, and required, that we do so.

People need and expect different things, and it is important when making decisions that you know what those things are. Treating people well does not mean treating people the same. #inthistogether