Same Storm. Different Boats.

We are all going through this pandemic with our own personal challenges

So today is about coming down after the high of my conversation with Lance Uggla yesterday about mental health in the workplace. Lance is the CEO of IHS Markit - the company I work for in my day job. It was broadcast live over our Intranet and I had a real buzz doing it, although I had been quite tense for a while before hand and had a couple of sleepless nights (ironic really given the subject – but when something matters to you, you are so much more determined to “get it right”).

But Lance was really genuine and supportive and kind throughout. He talked about his own experiences of mental health and it makes such a difference knowing that there is that experience, understanding and commitment at the top of the company to make it OK to talk about mental health. That one conversation and openness from our CEO will have given other people permission to express their own anxieties.

During our conversation, I said that currently “we were all in the same storm but we weren’t in the same boat”. It seems that that quote resonated strongly. So I wish I could lay claim to having come up with it myself. But I heard Rob Stephenson. CEO of Inside Out and FormScore, use it at a panel on Mental Health he hosted on Monday. And he tells me that he thinks he first heard it from Jonny Jacobs the Finance Director at Starbucks. But my blatant plagiarism aside, I think it is a great quote because it really takes a quick soundbite: “We are all in this together” and distils something more in depth from it.

We are all going through very similar restrictions on our lives at the same time. But how those restrictions and the stresses arising from the pandemic more widely affect us is very personal. I have had conversations with some of our remote workers who are actually finding things better for them, in a work context, because we are all remote workers now and they feel closer to the team as a result.

I have had conversations with parents who are really struggling balancing their new job as a teacher with their regular work. Starting early in the morning and continuing late into the night to try to get everything done and many of them feeling that none of it is “good enough”.

I have had conversations with people who are on their own in their flat or house and their only human interaction is either at 2m distance or through a video screen.

I have had conversations with people who seemed to be doing fine – no other challenges, with outside space to get exercise in and family with them, only to find out that their partner had lost their job, or a relative was ill with the virus and they were finding it really hard and stressful to deal with that pressure.

The truth is we will never completely understand which boat someone else is using to navigate this storm, but we can all try to remember that people will be doing their best to deliver what they need to and sometimes that will need a bit of flexibility and support. Its not even just managers’ responsibility – we can all check in with people and let them know we are there, refrain from judging others’ perceived naval craft and remember the theme of this week and remain kind to each other.

IHS Markit is showing a great sense of community through this pandemic and as I said yesterday I really hope that sense of compassion and kindness can be strengthened and held on to as we come out of the other side.