This story is a tale as old as time. Well, not really; I’d say it’s a tale as old as March 20, 2020, when the entire state shut down and I became a remote-work HR professional plus full-time kindergarten and third-grade teacher. Work was crazy in and of itself. Furloughing over 100 people, juggling unemployment, plus writing pandemic policies. Top that with math homework, coloring pages, google meets, and listening to morning announcements with Principal Carliles “Cooper the dog” was quite the circus show. Ensuring our parent’s groceries were delivered and they got their regular facetime calls to keep the grandparents happy. Television commercials, billboards and advertisements changed to reflect everyone was ordered to stay at home. At one point, there were five of us here doing school work and working remotely. The house usage put our wifi to the test, but we made it work in the end. Yes, there were tears and outbursts- from me, not the kids, but I learned something precious.
The children observed it all—every one of our behaviors and how we fought through such a challenging year. Here are the five valuable lessons I learned while a Human Resources Super Mom. These five lessons can be applied to your day-to-day home and work life.
Lesson One: Pay attention to your surroundings. You never know who is listening, watching, or observing you. The children watched me working every day from sun up until dinner time at my job to ensure my employees had what they needed.
One afternoon my seven-year-old was in art class and made for herself a laptop. I WAS DRAWING STRAWBERRY SHORTCAKE when I was her age, but I did get a good laugh from watching her type away on her cardstock laptop while talking on her plastic play phone. In this make-believe moment, she was a circus owner. She was on the phone with one of the “head” clowns. She was typing away on her keyboard. At that moment, I realized she DOES listen to everything I say. I recapped in my head the last few months with a slight panic. As she scolded the head clown on the other end of the phone, “No, I told you we need to fire him.” It clicked. Zoom call after zoom call, she was in class with headphones on but could hear my day-to-day conversations. If you pay attention to your surroundings, you become acutely aware of how your words impact others. Pay attention to the things you say and how you behave…someone is always watching.
It’s often our behavior when we think nobody is watching that shows our true character.
Integrity is doing the right thing. Even when no one is watching.
C.S. Lewis
Lesson Two: Be Patient. We weren’t patient at the beginning of the shutdown. I’m not going to sugar coat it. It was rough on us all. Attention spans were shot, employees were angry at me for not knowing all the answers. Math. Math is my nemesis. We all had to figure out new routines. He (the bearded one) handled the 3rd grader’s math when he got home from working 12 hour days. Quite frankly, he still continues to handle it now that we’re in 4th grade. Patience throughout the process is essential. Everyone is finding creative ways to make it through the life changes. We’re not all on the express train to accepting transition and change. Some of us need time to process. Think about your employees and what they are experiencing before you react! We’re so impatient in society today that we want everything NOW! Maximum results NOW with no work, but the reward comes from the waiting.
Patience is the companion of wisdom.
Augustine
Lesson Three: Mouths Closed While Listening. I’ve heard the littlest one’s teacher say that a few times during her Google Meets. Mouths closed while listening is an essential communication skill as adults, yet so many of us don’t know when to close our mouths. I listened to probably one of my favorite TedTalks of all time again the other day. Celeste Headlee “10 ways to have a better conversation”. Learning how to talk and listen is critical, but understanding when to speak and actually paying attention is fundamental to building strong communication.
Think about how many conversations you’ve had with a person who isn’t paying attention. You leave the conversation feeling empty. Pay attention, listen to what they are saying. Not to respond or react, but to understand what the need is in that moment.
“There is no reason to learn how to show you’re paying attention if you are, in fact, paying attention.”
Celeste Headlee
Lesson Four: Be Kind- There is a phrase that gets tossed around too quickly, and that is “It’s not personal; it’s just business.” That is not a very kind thing to think. According to a recent Gallup poll, “In January 2021, four million Americans had been unemployed for six months or more, accounting for 39.5% of the total unemployed.” So for those four million American’s that were unemployed, that expression, “it’s not personal,” might very well leave you with a black eye. It IS personal; it’s always emotional to the person you’re speaking to. Yes, a business’s survival depends on making challenging decisions daily, but you should never disregard the human impact of those decisions.
Kindess is a gift everyone can afford to give.
Unknown
Lesson Five: Enjoy Recess- The one thing I absolutely loved about “Specials Class” is when the kids would go outside and run around for recess. I took a page from their book. I’d take a walk up to the church parking lot and walk for my lunch break. “Blow the stink off,” as the bearded one says often. We all need to re-energize ourselves. You are not a slave to your desk. Get outside, take in some vitamin D and enjoy the ride. Life is too precious to not truly appreciate the blessings we can find daily.
I never expected that I would be a full-time HR Director and homeschooling parent. None of us expected the changes that have occurred, but I did grow and learn from the experience.
Live more for today, less for tomorrow, and never about yesterday.
Steve Gilliland -Enjoy the Ride: How to Experience the True Joy of Life
What have you learned in the last year?
Rise Above Solutions 