Quarantine Trends to Embrace and Ignore as an Entrepreneur
Admin • April 16, 2020
We’re all in This Together
There is a mixed bag of trends sweeping the globe as multiple nations experience varying levels of government lockdown in aid of combating the coronavirus outbreak. Some of these trends are very positive but some of them could be classed as negative. When it comes to the world of business and entrepreneurs there are many opinions flying around as to what is expected of a ‘successful, driven’ individual during this time of uncertainty.
The coming of the coronavirus and its impact on people is hugely dependant on their circumstances. For example, those who are parents, particularly those with young children will be struggling to balance working from home and educating let alone entertaining, their kids. This is where certain trends to emerge are a little out of the realm of reality and put unnecessary pressure on entrepreneurs.
Trend: You Should Be Learning a New Skill
We have seen this one everywhere. “If you don’t come out of quarantine with at least one new skill you are not driven enough”. It comes in varying forms but the message is the same. Essentially the message is that while the pace of life has slowed due to isolation, you should be dedicating time to add to your skillset. Now there is a positive spin in their somewhere and we get the sentiment, but actually for many this is totally unrealistic and adds a lot of undue pressure at a time when many of us naturally feel more anxious than usual.
For those with businesses suffering financially during the crisis – as millions are -, there will be much to do, much to consider and some tough choices to make about whether to stop work and what to do about staff. This doesn’t even consider how tough the scenario must be for those trying to work but also have children at home as we previously mentioned. When exactly are people expected to fit in the time to dedicated to blitz learning a new skill while juggling their business, children, the new stresses of working from home which will be alien to many, corona anxiety and of course finding time to sleep?
Time prioritisation will be crucial for many during the weeks ahead and you should never feel pressured or expected to take time away from that.
Trend: We’re all in This Together
This is a much more positive message and one that we can certainly get behind. While it isn’t necessarily universal, it is the case that most of the world is united through struggle. Governments and financial institutions are providing unprecedented levels of support and options to assist businesses and people with ways to manage their finances and potential reduced income scenarios. Businesses which are seeing increased demand and are available to operate are passing on their need for increased workers by making critical temporary hires and all in all, there does seem to be a national sense of unity and camaraderie.
Many businesses big and small will need help getting through this time and re-launching themselves when life starts to again resemble normality. If we all continue to be unified in our approach to life, health and work by supporting one another, we may see a much more connected and mutually beneficial society on the other side.
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