The Best Thing(s) to Happen to Me During the Pandemic
Tomorrow I get my second dose of the vaccine. It feels like New Year’s Eve, or the night before graduation. I can’t help but feel I’ve made it to the end of the pandemic and can very soon put this social isolation stuff behind me.
So it’s no surprise I feel the need to count my blessings (something I do anytime my life changes). Despite how challenging and stressful this time has been, there’s actually a three-way tie for “the best”.
The first “best” has to be getting fully vaxxed with my health intact. I’ve been pretty strict about keeping my distance from people and am happy it paid off. I haven’t contracted Covid-19, which means I haven’t passed it on to anyone. My family is healthy, as are my friends. I feel so unbelievably lucky.
The second “best” is my rescue pup (photo for cuteness).
I wanted a dog for years, but always put it off, thinking I didn’t have the room, time or space to accommodate a dog. Then I spent a month alone in my home with my own thoughts and decided “I can make it work with a dog”.
The third “best” thing was also a little unexpected and something I had been thinking of for quite some time — I lost my job.
I first felt the need for a job change back in 2018. I took a mental health leave for a few months to deal with the sudden death of someone close to me. When I returned in January 2019, I found the work conditions unbearable.
Most TV productions operate in open offices. My desk was simply a flat surface surrounded by other people at their flat surfaces. I was also sat in front of a filing cabinet with all of our office supplies. This was also the space where set food made its way, so there was a daily gathering behind my desk for food and chit-chat.
For years I managed to tune out distractions and move between tasks, back and forth, to deal with the constant distraction. Before my breakdown I prided myself on my focus. After my breakdown, I found it impossible to work this way.
I thought maybe it would take some time to readjust to being surrounded by noise again, but by January 2020 I decided enough was enough. I would finish that season and then find something else to do.
Of course we all know what happened to our Jan 2020 plans.
I clung to my job like a lifeline — terrified at the idea of looking for work during a pandemic. But also, rejuvenated by how productive I could be working from home. Without regular interruptions and distractions, a “to-do” list that used to take me 8 to 9 hours, would be knocked off in 6.
Working from home was a shock to the system. But it also confirmed what I long suspected: I do my best work when I’m left alone to concentrate.
In the before times, I put up with a stressful work environment because I didn’t know any different. I thought I could put up with it because I enjoyed the work so much, even though I hated the office design.
Now I do know different, as do all workers who adapted to working from home. There’s no need to put up with what didn’t work before when alternatives can work too. Hybrid work offers the chance to take the best of what worked before and what’s working now.
I have no idea how much longer I can keep working exclusively from home. But I do know the work I’ve set up for myself right now is the happiest I’ve been in years and will do whatever it takes to keep it going.
