During this crisis, you may be asking the question, what can I do to help? How can I communicate that I care? What difference can I make? Meanwhile, you may be scrambling to save your own business or keep your career from crashing, all while home schooling your children.
It has been more than a month since the Covid-19 quarantine was officially mandated. In that time, it has been surreal to see social events and sports, amusement parks and beaches, classes and even churches, and worse of all—jobs—all shut down! On a personal note, my entire Spring speaking calendar cleared out as many events moved to Fall 2020, early 2021 or converted into virtual meetings. And, due to the ban on large gatherings, my daughter’s upcoming June wedding has now been downsized to a small home-based gathering with a few family and friends.
Despite all the devastation and disappointment, it has been awe-inspiring to watch the ways that people have been able to communicate caring and work together! We have seen the stories on the news and social media about people doing coronavirus fundraising for those in need, making thousands of masks for frontline workers and singing Zoom-style to uplift the spirits of us all.
Yet, it occurs to me that not everyone needs to do big things to make a difference. In the words of Napoleon Hill, “If you cannot do great things, do small things in a great way.”
We are all great at something that we can use to communicate our caring and positively impact others during this difficult time. Perhaps you bake a kick-butt bread that you can deliver in a socially distanced way to an elderly neighbor. Perhaps you’re a good listener and can call a friend who is sheltering in place alone and lend a listening ear. Or, perhaps, like one of my speaking colleagues who is an expert on Zoom, you can donate your time to teach others a useful skill…virtually. No gesture is too small.
One thing I know for sure is that communication and caring are not cancelled. As a professional speaker who specializes in communication keynotes, I may not be able to get on a stage anytime soon. But I have started recording one-minute videos with positive messages to post on social media. I organized a virtual vision board meetup with my girlfriends. And, I’ve sent notes of encouragement to my favorite speakers bureaus along with masks handmade by a friend.
What small things can you do to communicate caring during this crisis? What skills or expertise can you leverage to lessen the load for someone else? (And by the way, feel better yourself in the process!) What small things can you do in a great way? Above all else, please stay safe, stay healthy and stay positive!
