”Let’s think about the comments we heard around us before the pandemic about people’s job satisfaction, their lives in general: a valley of grief from most. In fact, in 2017, a global Gallup study showed that 85% of respondents hated their jobs. Stress, burnout, the growing need to balance personal and professional life, meaninglessness, wellbeing, were common words and became concerns of most companies. Many times these concerns have remained at the level of statements, ppt, resounding presentations, devoid of content.
Although people complained a lot, the steps taken, both at the individual level and at the level of companies and society, were small to bring about change.
Of course, you will say, there are also people who are passionate about what they do, enthusiastic by nature, energetic, who pursue not only their own interests but who also want to help the common interests together with those in companies, groups of society. I know many such people who give their time and energy to support others voluntarily, to help transform society.
But let’s look, for the moment, at the landscape during the pandemic. We don’t have another Gallup study yet, but I don’t think it has increased the level of dedication, enthusiasm of individuals towards the workplace. On the contrary, I would venture to say.
Not because companies, managers, have done anything negative in particular. But everywhere in the above landscape, over the valley of mourning mentioned, I superimposed: the fear of death of ourselves and those around us; insecurity about tomorrow; job insecurity; visible decrease in purchasing power, quality of life, economy, the closure of so many companies, the transition from one day to another to work online, to school in the virtual environment, poor communication at the level of the country’s leadership, transparency of the majority of those in leadership positions.
All this has eroded a little of people’s trust in others, in the future, they have led to fatigue, frustration, anxiety.
You will say, ‘Oh my, what negativity!’
I would rather say that it is good to look at things from above, like a doctor doing an x-ray of one’s health. We would like the doctor to correctly assess what works and what does not, so as to prescribe solutions, treatments, interventions. Otherwise, we would be fooled, right?
Why not look down on the state of society, of ourselves, why not be our own radiologist?
But beyond the clear image, it is essential to find our recommendations, the recipe.
Like the radiologist who needs another doctor to interpret our results and make our plan of action, I think that each of us needs, especially when we are in a state of vulnerability, support to make our plan. .
It is difficult to really adapt to the changes that are coming to us. If it were as easy as it is for us to adopt words like ‘resilience’, ‘agility’, ‘change management’, etc. in our educated vocabulary, we would all do it with a snap of our fingers and we might be, sometimes, like Teflon pans: nothing would stick. But there are many things that stick: values, knowledge, behaviors, ideas, desires, ideals, hopes, feelings. And that’s very good. We are a sum of all the experiences, hopes, dreams, passions, education, the people we interacted with, the places we walked. How do we put aside the impact that some feelings have had on us? What we can do, especially in the case of negative feelings, is to diminish their importance, so as to make room for others, better, appropriate to the person we become.
I remember a story:
‘A student goes to a Zen master to ask him to teach him something. The master offers him tea. He pours the tea into the teacup until it leaks and keeps pouring. The student says to him: ‘what are you doing? You poured over, stop! ’And the Zen master answers: the man is like this cup. If you want to pour more tea than the cup can contain at a time, you must first pour in the existing contents to put another, fresher one. If you want to learn something new, you must first give up what already exists, some things, ideas, mentalities, to make room for the new ones. ‘
A story that we all understand rationally. And yet it is difficult to change. Why? Because it is a comfort zone that helps us but also limits us. We need comfort, especially now that everything is moving around. We need landmarks, security (although here is often a false security, an illusion), stability, it is necessary to have the basic needs covered, we must be validated by those around us, accepted, we are love is vital, it relaxes us to know that we are healthy, that we have time for ourselves, that we have a job.
Beyond that, however, there are some aspects it’s good to keep in mind:
We are social animals, we need others, we need to be together, to settle in the world and according to it, to identify the groups with which we have common values, to be united when needed, to take care of each other, to care. In the pandemic, with all the difficulties, it is good to make efforts to be united, to support each other. It’s hard for everyone. Maybe it’s a good time to accept others more easily, with their good and bad, to understand that they are human too, to offer them support and ask for support when we need it.
In the professional sphere, let’s accept that the manager is also a man, he has difficulties, like everyone else, he has not gone through a pandemic before;
If we have the role of manager, let us understand that the people in the team need support, trust, less micromanagement.
Let’s look around for someone to support us: a mentor, coach, psychologist, friend, it’s good to talk to someone who knows how to listen, to contain us, as if he were imagining us in arms.
Let’s make a ‘to-be list’ – it’s a good time to focus on ourselves, how we want to be, how we should get out of this pandemic, with what qualities, skills, knowledge; take care of this list at least as well as we do a ‘to-do list’
Let’s think about the team we are part of and how we can better contribute to its success and well-being; big changes occur not only from above, but also step by step, minute by minute, effort after effort, at the level of the individual and small groups that can influence other groups until they turn into such a big wave that the whole society it is impregnated
Let’s think about society and how we can contribute. It may seem like too much, but if we help some children from a school or associations that support education, a hospital, a nursery or the elderly, small entrepreneurs who are now struggling to withstand the crisis, Romanian publications that matter to us, tourism in places in Romania that we like, we help society at our level. It is just as important to do this as the salt was in the emperor’s dishes from Petre Ispirescu’s fairy tales. Beyond helping society, I assure you that the feeling of contributing to a cause greater than ourselves is extremely beneficial in the economy of a person’s life.
Let’s reflect a little on how we manage our own reactions, so as not to give cause for anxiety.
Let’s manage the information we give to our minds, so that we have a good balance between what is necessary to protect us and what is useful to keep us afloat, to think healthily, to have hope.
I would like to paraphrase Descartes and say ‘Muto ergo sum’ (I change so I exist) but I will be content to say ‘I adapt so I exist’. We, humans, have adapted to many things throughout the history of civilization. Over time, these adaptations have brought major changes. Therefore there is hope!”
via: Revista Cariere