A couple of years ago, this BBC news clip went viral. I watched it on a loop and remember my stomach hurting from laughing hysterically.
I remember commiserating with my workmates, and seriously wishing I could walking into every meeting like THAT kid.
Dad was a real pro— remained relatively calm as he politely gave his kid a Heisman in the face.
Mom came RACING in frantically …. nearly faceplanting while trying to get a hold of the flying saucer (aka baby) and her oldest who was marching like she was leading the Rose Parade.
And considering the interview topic (North Korea!) the timing wasn’t great. (live TV is generally not great timing)
But isn’t that what made it all so … REAL and hilarious?
Last week, my husband, who’s been working from the basement office since his voice carries, texted us that the footsteps upstairs were LOUD.
He had an important meeting with senior leaders and I’m sure it was difficult to concentrate. But honestly, I was not feeling too sympathetic— because isn’t that EVERYONE right now???
Many of us struggle to maintain our sanity on any given “normal” day— During Covid— just maintaining is utterly exhausting.
During Covid, our daily checklist looks like this (at least mine does):
Stay healthy
Stay indoors
Get fresh air, but don’t get near anyone
Eat healthy
But don’t go to the grocery store often
Take vitamins
Drink wine
But too much wine will disrupt your sleep
Sleep is important to health
Scour the internet for TP, hand sanitizer and wipes
Join every Facebook group and follow every # to get real time alerts on which Target has TP in stock
Cook healthy meals for you and / or your family every day
Prepare all homeschool lessons a day in advance
Manage 2nd grade social calendar and ensure Zoom meetings aren’t hacked by creepers.
You know what I’m saying. It’s just A LOT to manage.
So back to our expert guy— he gets interrupted and he apologizes PROFUSELY. Last week, I got interrupted by my daughter last week and I apologized profusely. It’s definitely a “normal” response.
But you know what? None of this is normal— so here’s a thought.
Replace “sorry”… with “thank you”.
Thanks for your patience!
Thanks for saying hi to my kid!
Thanks for letting me see your dog!
Thanks for hanging in there with me!
Give yourself and those you work with the space and compassion to be a human being. Now is not the time to assess someone’s “executive presence”.
If we can give the permission to ourselves to be a little less perfect, we can do the same for others and be stronger after all of this is in the rear view mirror.
In the words of the Queen:
"We will succeed - and that success will belong to every one of us.”
Damn. She’s good.
And so are you.
Jean
PS: Link below to the clip. You have to.
