The invisible Megatrend that established a new order in our lives was revealed at the Olympics
Covid teaches us a lesson about transparent forces that run our lives.
We thought we were omnipotent, that everything was under our control and that we were the undisputed rulers of the world. And suddenly, an invisible virus established a new world order. The sophisticated virus is just one hidden force from the eye that revolves around us, and after we calmed down a bit from Linoy Ashram’s winning the gold medal in rhythmic gymnastics, it’s time to talk about another megatrend, which is also — invisible.
It started with Bank Hapoalim’ campaign in which the bank chose to show us the athletes and in the background were the voices of their families. It is true that Israel is a very warm and family-oriented country, but this is not a random choice. The power of the family (tribe) is on the rise in the world, both because the pandemic allowed workers to leave the big cities and return to their families and also because the family is an anchor for us, and certainly in times of stress and uncertainty as the Covid arranged for us.
This continued in Linoy’s exercise with the ball. The music playing in the background was of the hit “Big in Japan.” Her genius coach, Ayelet Sussman, who is also responsible for choosing the music (and editing it! Yes, she specifically studied music editing so she can adapt it to her trainee and exercises) and also for the choreography, chose a nostalgic hit that stroked. We have already seen in previous posts what the power of nostalgia is in times of distress like a global crisis, how it calms us down and causes us some sanity in global chaos, how companies choose to use it in the last year (especially in commercials), and how it has helped Italy win the Eurovision.
Anyone who has watched the Russian contestant and her twin in the thrilling moments of scoring and deciding may have noticed the dolls they hold in their hands. This vision may seem strange considering their age and status, but in the U.S. there is a very big trend right now of dolls that are fun to hug. According to the New York Times, 73 million Squishmallows dolls have been sold in the country in the past year. It started as early as 2017, and has become a hit among adults as well, and their popularity has skyrocketed since the outbreak of the pandemic. The twins’ dolls look different, or perhaps it’s even dolls that they kept from childhood, and no doubt serve the same purpose.
If all this was not enough to understand where I am aiming, then I return to the image of Linoy in the ball exercise. We are used to hearing that sporting events, performances, and music concerts are universal things that unite human beings. The sharp-eyed among you may have noticed the slogan of the Olympics that hung everywhere in the hall, and if you have already noticed it, it probably surprised you: “United by emotion.”
The Olympics website explains the slogan: “ It’s hoped the ceremony will be an experience that conveys how we all have the ability to celebrate our differences, to empathize, and to live side-by-side with compassion for one another.
And indeed, when Simon Bales retired, there were many voices of sympathy and compassion for her (unlike in the past, when such a case would probably have elicited more critical reactions that say she is not built for stress), and so the figure of the Olympic athlete instantly changed from a hero to an adored anti-hero, and raised the emotions to a renewed discourse in the world of sports.
What was still hard to miss in this context, were the photographs that indicate the strong emotional relationship between Linoy and her personal trainer, which was different in the landscape from the other gymnasts. To clarify this, I will quote from an interview with the coach from the Israel Olympic Committee website:
“With Linoy I have a special relationship! ….” I try to get into her mind and tell her the right thing at the right time and place.
If a coach fails to get into the head of the athlete it will be very difficult to achieve the desired result.
What the gymnast needs to do, she knows because she is working on an auto-pilot mode. Her physical readiness exists. She also knows what is expected of her. The essential difference is in her mental readiness. Putting it all together for the right moment is an art. I know at a glance what Linoy is feeling, what condition she is in. So I know what to tell her to get the most out of it. “
From Bales and the above quote, we suddenly see that athletes are not the robots we used to think they are in the past. True, there is the side of the auto-pilot mode and know what is expected from them, but to really get the maximum, the coach attests to perceiving at a glance Linoy’s emotional state and knowing how to navigate it to the right place, and that is indeed art.
How does all this relate to the work world? Because whether you are a government office, a company, or an NGO, the employees in your organization are not robots either. It is true that some of their work is done on auto-pilot and they know what is expected of them, but since the outbreak of Covid, the pressure has increased (both at work and at home by forced changes that came as a surprise) and many workplaces have tended to turn a blind eye to workers’ emotional state. As a result, there is a large wave of resignations (only in April it was reported that 4 million people resigned from their jobs in the US) which has been called The Big Resignation. Now the job should fit into our lives and not live to work. Many people are looking for flexibility in work (whether in hours or the possibility of working remotely), looking to be closer to family (as we mentioned at the beginning of the post), improve wages (especially among those who earn low salaries, mainly in the hotel industry and restaurants), do things that make them happy, and some just do not want to go back to unsafe or exploitative jobs.
In normal times, when a lot of people leave jobs, it indicates a healthy economy and an excess supply of jobs. But these are not normal times, the pandemic has led to the worst US recession in history, and millions of people are still unemployed. However, employers are now complaining about an acute shortage of workers, and it is time for workplaces to make new employee retention plans, out of a renewed understanding of what is important to them.
It used to be said that the most important asset of an organization is its people. Over the years, it seems that this approach has been forgotten and that organizations have begun to treat human resources as something replaceable at all times. Maybe it’s time to go back to the old approach.
What changes to retain employees have been made in your organization since the outbreak of the pandemic?
