Sitting on the beach sipping ice tea (or ice Americano sometimes) I’ve noticed how people are enjoying themselves. Some are tanning themselves on the beach and others are swimming in the water. Even though the news is preoccupied with Covid 19, many people have gotten on with their lives. The daily infection count in the US for Covid the other day was increasing it still was not as high as it was. In essence vaccines have worked. Perhaps herd immunity is developing in the US and elsewhere. Though there is talk about the Delta variant, so far the number of serious infections have decreased in the US. So, it appears that maybe the worst of the pandemic is behind us, at least in the countries that have access to the vaccine.
There are a number of lessons I think that people should have learned during the pandemic. One of the lessons is that all things shall eventually pass. Pandemics eventually pass. Catastrophes eventually pass. Even careers and businesses eventually pass. Of course all of us will eventually pass too. People will eventually go back to their regular lives. Daily concerns will eventually trump concerns about Covid. In essence, whether retired or not, people will need to think about the long haul not just short term concerns and short term problems.
If you are managing a business you should realize that in many parts of the world, businesses are opening up again especially in the hospitality sector. The travel industry also as well. If you are a risk manager or in-house counsel, you should realize that to a certain extent things are going back to semi-normal which means you have to think about the issues you faced before the pandemic as well as issues you will face post pandemic. It appears many office workers were more productive in the office than working at home. Are you prepared to go back to the office? Are your employees ready to go back to the office?
Knowing the pandemic shall pass means you need to prepare for the long haul. If you manage a business- did your business plan survive? Did your marketing plan work? What legal issues presented themselves and were you prepared for them? Are you prepared for business and legal risks after the pandemic?
I think the Covid pandemic has shown how resilient the human race is. It has shown society in general that it is not a long term threat as much as a short term threat (the vaccines appear to be working and were introduced 1 year after the major outbreaks which shows how far science has come) which means life for many will eventually go back to normal.
So remember, to be successful you have to think about the long haul. Sure short term problems will arise, but they eventually pass. Think about the long haul. Think about long term issues and concerns. Are you ready for the future?
