Thanks to a last minute pivot, our son's college graduation ended up being in-person.
Like many other events this year, you could see that the organizers attempted to keep traditional components, and but needed to get creative when restrictions limited them.
Not knowing what to expect, we entered the National's Ball Park, received our thin program, meandered around a bit, then found our socially distanced seats.
After the short "just the basics" program that included recorded music and video messages, we left our seats and made our way to exit the stadium.
Then my son received a text from a friend, which led us to the "the photo booth" hosted by the college of business.
Here we found several unmasked business school deans with big congratulatory smiles on their faces dancing to music and encouraging the grads walking by to pose with them for pictures in front of a backdrop of the business school.
We stopped and chatted. The head of business school light-heartedly said to my son "let's pretend" as he handed him a rolled up mock-diploma, shook his hand and posed for a photo with him.
It felt awkward for an instant.
It was so contrary to the very sanitary version of everything else we had experienced that day.
Then...it felt awesome!
It was human, warm and personal. I found myself getting choked up as I witnessed the interactions.
Simple personal and in-person encounters is what we need each and every day.
Susan Pinker has researched this thoroughly in her book, The Village Effect: How Face-To-Face Contact Can Make Us Healthier, Happier and Smarter. She documents how face to face contact literally strengthens our immunities and is the number one contributor to a long life.
You know what else it does?
It makes you feel awesome.
Leaders,
As your team returns to work, keep in mind they may need to be encouraged to socialize. Help them through the awkward beginnings by role modeling and encouraging the social behavior that makes us all feel and be better.
About me: I am passionate about getting the workplace culture right. I know that cold hard facts combined with compassion is what is needed to motivate individuals to do the hard work that change requires. I help leaders determine what they need to do to modernize their culture and workplace to make it smart, safe and inspiring. I also train people leaders to role model and inspire development of In Real Life business skills that promote camaraderie, relational equity, innovation and belonging.
Key Points:
- In-person social interaction is a powerful force for emotional wellbeing, engagement, and even longevity — leaders should be deliberate about fostering it as teams return to hybrid or physical offices.
- Creative, human moments — even small ones — make workplace culture feel authentic and memorable, helping employees reconnect and feel seen after prolonged isolation.