5 years on, now is a good time to be asking this question again – in boardrooms and in teams – ideally, together:
What did we learn from the pandemic?
I know reflecting on this isn’t easy or appealing for anyone. But the reason it’s hard to do the reflecting is the reason it’s important we try – the pandemic was an interconnected global crisis we can learn from as best we can, to help us navigate current and future crises better.
And why bother now?
Simply because we tend to overestimate how much change can happen in the short term (1 year or so) while underestimating what can happen in the long term (10 years or so).
The near permanent BBC headline in the early days: “When will things return to normal?” was a good indicator of this. Despite the global chaos, we expected, and understandably wanted, things to change back quickly.
Of course, we never did go back and the new normal is still emerging (hello cyclical hybrid working debates). So, if pandemic reviews have been done and dusted they are unlikely to serve us as well as they might.
This continuous learning is much better done than not done. By asking a few questions over time, useful things come up:
- Looking back, what helped us most?
- In what ways are we still recovering?
- What do we wish we’d done differently over these 5 years?
- What have we learnt that we’d like to keep close in the future?
- If you were to sum up what you learned in the last 5 years in a few words, what would you say? (hard to do, but give it a try!)
The different perspectives that emerge with the passing of time can be both healing and helpful, supporting us to integrate lessons and feel more resilient – as people, teams and organisations – as we continue to navigate the uncertainty and challenges that face us daily.
