Do You Want Life to Go Back to Pre-Coronavirus Normal?

“We learn more in crisis than in comfort.”
― Abhijit Naskar

As you have read the title, today’s question is “do you want life to go back to Pre-Coronavirus normal?”. And my answer to this question is maybe No. Earlier this year, when the coronavirus pandemic has spread across the world, I desperately hoped our lives to go back to normal as soon as possible. No international travels, no social gatherings, and no to almost everything we do. Our lives were radically changed instantly.

But when I think about those days before the pandemic, our normal was a little crazy. At least my urban life in Tokyo/Yokohama was not ideal. Every morning, I was squeezed into a jam-packed train, where I was surrounded by strangers and wasn’t literally able to move at all. And it was the same everywhere. We were all squeezed into small spaces in restaurants, bars, and the list goes on.

And in my workplace, I had to deal with my colleagues who are difficult to work with. To be honest, power harassments prevailed in almost all offices I worked at. They yelled and used strong words to criticize my small mistakes EVERY SINGLE DAY! Not only did I experience power harassment, but also I had to work overtime a lot. I can’t believe anyone could stand those toxic working conditions. And we all had to ride the jam-packed trains to go home after work.

Luckily, I had a chance to switch my career at the end of the last year, and now I’m allowed to work from home. This is a personal story; when I quit my previous job, I emailed my manager everything I’ve been bottled for the past few years. Since I’m the type of person who doesn’t show off his feelings on the professional occasion, he seemed shocked to acknowledge how he has been seen by me for those years. At least my current working condition is much better when compared with the previous one.

And here comes my another question: Do we need an office after all? Since I’m working in IT, most of my work can be done at home without traveling by the jam-packed train to the middle of Tokyo. Why do we have to spend those unproductive and stressful hours every day on travel while we can work from home more comfortably? Is there any particular need to rush back to the old-normal? I don’t think so.

But don’t get me wrong. I understand the fact that a lot of people lost their jobs because of the pandemic, especially those who worked in the travel/service industry. And I really miss those interactions with my priceless friendships without borders. So, when it comes to travel, I really hope the world will re-start international flights.

On the other hand, I also think like this. Even though a lot of people in the travel/service industries lost their jobs, this might be a great chance for them to find new opportunities in larger companies. Think about it. If you were a traveling agency’s HR manager, for instance, there would be no better opportunity for you to find an excellent talent than now. So, I hope you won’t lose your hope despite the current situation.

Lastly, when we look back in history, it was the relatively un-pandemiced century between Spanish flu and Covid-19, which is a statistical oddity, not living with any potential risks presented by infections. I hope the current pandemic could be a wake-up call for humanity to slow down and re-think how we should build this world again.

Here are some shots of the Yokohama downtown I photographed with Pixel 4a and Moment fisheye lens.

Via: UnHerd