#StayAtHomeDiaries
Day 6--Sunday
The day started with our firm's Chairman asking for our thoughts on whether to keep people working or tell them to stop. This is especially relevant for the domestic employees who work at your home. It was nice to engage in a direct conversation with the head of the firm first thing in the morning.
At 1 PM, there was another unique experience. The firm's Tech Group leader invited everyone in the group to a virtual tour on art history given by a colleague who earned a master’s degree in modern art from Christie’s Auction House before her legal career. The idea was to appreciate the fact that your colleagues have more facets to them than just their legal talent.
At 3 PM, I had a mentorship phone call with a neighbor's daughter who is contemplating a career switch from neurobiology to patent law.
Feels like I have done more professionally related work this "shelter-in-place" Sunday than any recent Sundays before the pandemic became real. The reality is surreally warped now. The compartmentalization that I so religiously tried to maintain between my weekday routine ("go to office and work there") and weekend ("do not work and spend time with family") has become totally blurred.
In some way, it seems like we are in a time-space continuum right now. Managers are scrambling to find out what emotionally clicks with people who are stressed. Employees are getting to know their managers' emotional landscape better. Just like we are all trying to keep our homes safe, the leaders of the workforce are trying to keep the workplace going. It is a humbling and sobering experience indeed.
And before you get too worried for me working too hard in the weekend, rest assured I am not. I chatted with my siblings (in India and US) and my tennis buddies, hiked 5 miles with my family this morning, helped my son cook an awesome meat stew with lots of vegetables this afternoon, and in the evening, the three of us watched the 1995 movie "Outbreak" on Netflix (go watch it again if you haven't recently). So we are doing everything possible to stay safe, stay relaxed and thrive.
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