So, it seems that we may finally be heading back to work! Well, I know that most of the team in one form or another have been in and out of the office, albeit in a temporary way, but as of the end of April, I am hoping that I can join them, and we can be heading towards full steam ahead for what I hope will be a busy year.  But I wanted to address the issues we have faced, not technologically as we have already told you how great we are at that, but more physically and mentally.  I don’t think we will be heading back to the workplace as the same people who left at the beginning of the pandemic.  I know I for one will not.  Far from it.  I look at pictures of me now compared to two years ago, and I cannot recognise myself.  The worry of making sure the company is working and my staff are kept employed, the worry of keeping a roof over our heads and also of catching Coronavirus I think have all taken their toll, perhaps in a deeper sense than I first thought.  I know when I look deep into my eyes when I wash in the morning (another ritual I am trying to get back into), I see a different person looking back.

I have not lost my drive but having lived in this world of limbo for so long, it’s almost hard to separate what is, from what isn’t.  All I have done, for the longest time, is direct my team from afar, and talk to landlords, tenants, agents, team members, collaborators friends and family on the phone and on facetime or zoom or teams or any other platform that doesn’t include any human contact.  And you know what, I think it’s taken its toll – especially recently.

So, I think the point of this short little blog is to say that oh yes, I am super excited about getting back to the workplace.  I have spent years building a team that feels like family, and I have missed them, a lot, but also it will take a bit of getting used to.  I don’t know how long it's going to be before I am comfortable giving someone a hug, or even a handshake, but we will get there, slowly.  So let's be kind for the next few months and accept that everyone has had different experiences of this pandemic, and some scars run deeper than others.