Six Skills and Habits I Have Improved From the Pandemic
I’m generally a positive person, and when I hear about people complaining or otherwise being negative about the pandemic, I like to reflect on my life and consider the positives of the pandemic (or really, any negative situation). What mistakes did I make? What did I learn? How can I apply it to this ‘new’ normal?
Relationships (personal)
Due to the pandemic and being locked down, I spent more time with my closest family as everybody worked from home. I quickly learned (from my experience and witnessing others) that this could be a wonderful thing or the impetus that leads to tension and conflict. Spending A LOT of time with someone means you get to know everything about that person.
On the other hand, I also learned that even if we (my partner and I) are stuck together doesn’t mean we can’t find times when we do our own thing — going out for a run, going into a separate room to meditate, etc.
- Spending a lot of time with someone can be a great accelerator for your relationship, either good or bad.
- Just because you are forced to spend a lot of time with someone doesn’t mean you can’t find time for yourself.
Relationships (work)
I read an article that said we are all closer to our coworkers. The reason? Because when we do video calls with our coworkers, we can typically get a glimpse into their personal lives — if they have pets or children, if they read certain books, if they have art pieces or posters on their walls, where they are working from, are they working in a home or apartment, etc.
If my coworker has their background off, I, like most people I imagine, snoop a bit to see what I can see. But the other thing I do is try to weave it into the conversation.
- “Hey, I see you have many books beside you — reading anything interesting?”
- “Is that a dog? What kind of dog is it?”
- “Oh, your daughter is so cute. How old is she?”
