OFFICE LOCKDOWN: DAY 35

It’s official. We have been in lockdown for over a month, and there’s still no real indication of when this is going to end. It’s safe to say I’ve learnt a lot about myself; I actually miss my daily commute, I can work from home much more effectively than I thought, and I have become addicted to Cheese Strings.

Learnings aside, though, this is an incredibly unsettling time to be on lockdown. I’m sure most people will agree. My company is going through some big changes, and there’s a lot of uncertainty in the air. And whilst in some ways it’s good to be separated from the drama that would inevitably happen were we in the office right now, it’s also horrible being so far away from my friends and colleagues, a lot of whom are going through an even more stressful time.

It’s never fun to feel powerless when your friends are going through a hard time. But when you can’t physically see them to give them a hug and let them rant, I think it’s even worse. Given I’m so busy at work at the moment, it’s also hard to be there to support friends who have been furloughed and are sitting at home worrying by themselves. The way I see it, we’re all either so busy we can’t remember our own names or we’re so quiet there’s nothing to do but catastrophise about the state of the world, the future and where we stand in our jobs.

Having said all of that, I’m doing my best to stay connected and be there if and when people feel like they need someone to talk to. A lot of my own anxiety stems from others’ anxiety; I’m like a sponge. So, whilst there’s nothing I can do to help them in their various jobs and careers, it actually helps me as much as (I hope) it helps them to offer them my empathy and be a shoulder to cry/ rant/ vent on.