Are You Thinking About This?

In my video newsletter last week, I spoke about my recent in-person client meetings in over a year. To stay on that theme, it’s important to look at this from both your company and clients’ perspectives. What will change? What will stay the same? 

One example of this is my recent experience planning a trip to Florida to pick up my mom. Traveling isn’t exactly the same as it was, with many airlines running less flights. For instance, there was a very early morning flight available and a later evening flight available when looking for tickets. Neither of those is great for my mom, but an evening is much better than a morning. 

Instead of getting frustrated at the lack of options, I was just thankful there were flights! The world is never going to be just as it was and while some of the changes aren’t ideal, many others, like how we learned to really communicate with one another and relish in the simple things, gave us a lot to think about and learn from. 

How can you accommodate your clients and team, both those comfortable and NOT comfortable with in-person meetings/events/work?

Can you still use Zoom and other technology and create a long-term hybrid work model? Can you set aside certain days and times for in-person meetings and other days and times for virtual meetings to keep your schedule straight? Will some of your events need to continue virtually so you don’t lose some of your audience? Depending on your industry, you need to review and plan. 

Remember to always approach people with respect.

Due to privacy laws and ethics, you cannot simply ask someone if they have been vaccinated. That is a personal health choice and unless they offer the information, it’s not something to lightly discuss. Do you have policies in your workplace about vaccines? Does your team understand all of that? What about your clients? What about mask policies or social distancing? Keep everyone updated and on the same page so there are no surprises as people start coming back to work and to meetings. 

Be cognizant of people’s work/life balances that are still happening. 

Some of your clients might be back at their own offices full-time, while others are still working in a hybrid or remote model. If your client normally came in for a session every week, but now works at home and has their children home for the summer, you must have a plan. It might change in September when the kids are back in school, but this summer looks differently for a variety of families. Being adaptable and flexible is key. And we are all used to doing just that over the past year and a half, so it should come with more ease. 

Stay true to your values and in alignment with your vision. 

Don’t feel pressured by what other people are doing. Do what is best for your company, your team, your family, etc. Live your brand and take care of your people. Through this pandemic, support has been such an important piece in all of our lives. 

If you need any support as you navigate the second half of 2021, reach out to me. My roundtables will be starting again in the Fall and I’d love to have you at the table.