Social Isolation is a killer … literally. In 2017, the Oxford Academic ranked the “lack of social connection” against a variety of established lifestyle risk factors. While the report was revisited in 2020, they found that the effects of “isolation” are similar to that of obesity, physical inactivity, air pollution and in some cases, it exceeds the health risks associated with smoking 15 cigarettes a day.

There is no doubt that “social distancing” has impacted the efforts of creative teams, especially those in the Architecture, Construction and Engineering industries. The sudden lack of in person meetings, not showing up at “the office” and talk face-to-face with colleagues has posed many communication challenges.

Furthermore, remote work often means a disrupted home schedule. If we are parents, we automatically became full-time teachers, cafeteria workers and crisis managers, juggling learning schedules, lunch breaks, and work-related deadlines. Seriously, how many times have we had our own “quarantined co-workers” (spouses, children, and the occasional dog or cat) “helpfully” join our client meetings to provide their opinions? The lines between work and home are blurring and we have to remember to find ways to practice self-care and manage these new sources of stress.

This informs our multipronged approach of combatting these challenges, so we strive to get outside, get exercise, and see familiar faces. That only helps our creative teams.