David J.
Danto
Business travel
thoughts in my own, personal opinion
eMail: ddanto@IMCCA.org Follow Industry News: @NJDavidD
NOT Traveling Blog, 4th
Week Of March
In 2014 I was voted
by USA Today readers as one of the top ten business travel bloggers in the
USA. Now mind you, I turned out to be number ten on the list of
ten, but I did make it on (with my thanks to all those who voted.) Now that we’re all stuck at home and not traveling, I had to think about what
to do with my blogs. I could stop
writing them entirely – waiting till we all get through the current COVID19
pandemic / crisis. I could wax nostalgic
and/or complain about past trips. Or, I could
focus all of my efforts on my day job – growing the use of collaboration
technologies – especially in light of how many people are now forced to use
those tools for the first time. In
reflecting upon those choices, what I decided to do is compile an ongoing list
of observations during the crisis. Some
of these may amuse, some may inform, some may sadden and others may help. My goal will be for you to have seen
something in a different light than you did before you stopped to read the
blog. I was going to apologize for how
disjointed these thoughts may seem when put together, but then it dawned on me
that feeling disjointed is our new normal – at least for a little while.
So, in no particular order:
·
Before
you do anything else today, make sure you watch the now viral video (are we
still allowed to use the term “viral” in good taste?) of a frustrated mom-thrust-into-home-teacher
role (with subtitles.) I’m not sure
how authentic it is, but it is a fair comment to teachers everywhere – maybe
ease-up a bit, at least until we get into some sort of pandemic rhythm.
·
Social
media vs. regular media is providing a fascinating case study. On TV (as I write this) we are still seeing
commercials for mall-store weekend sales (as if nothing had happened) showing us
how far in advance these spots are created and scheduled. We are just now beginning to see on TV and
hear on the radio commercials made in response to the crisis. I honestly don’t know which is creepier –
watching tweens dance around in the outfits they’re urging us to come down (to
a store that’s closed) to buy, or hearing some firm actually acknowledge the
crisis and that life has just radically changed for the foreseeable future. It’s kind of a toss-up. Social media on the other hand is already flooded
with posts about the pandemic. I used to
use Twitter and Facebook and other sites to stay on top of what was going on in
the world – an activity that has become much, much more depressing than it was
before. And, while I’m on the subject of
social media, somebody has clearly ‘turned
that up to eleven.’ People who
regularly use (Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn, etc.) seem to be living on it 24/7,
and people who have never really used it much are actually dipping their toes in
for the first time. (A post I made
yesterday received a “like” from an ex co-worker that hasn’t shown her face on
Facebook for years.)
·
Remember
that old Sylvester Stallone / Sandra Bullock movie Demolition Man? The high level plot is that after being
frozen for many years Stallone’s character is woken-up to a society that has
completely changed. One of the changes included
the idea that ‘franchise wars’ took place, and as a result all restaurants
became Taco-Bells. I remind you of this
now for two reasons. Firstly, that after
this pandemic is over it’s entirely possible that all retailers will become
Amazons, and secondly, this movie is a frightening premonition of what our
society may become. Not word-for-word
identical of course, but I have to ask – is anyone else frightened that in many
western democracies we now seem to be giving in to quite a bit of additional governmental
power and reduced freedoms? I don’t see
another possible choice at this time, but it doesn’t frighten me any less. We’ve already “postponed” primary elections
in response to the crisis. That’s
getting awfully close to the edge for me.
·
The
industry I work in (Communications and Collaboration) has stepped up in a big
way offering their services to the millions that are now forced to work
remotely. I’ve written dozens of blogs
on remote working and am a huge proponent of it, but I realize that it is new
to many. (Feel free to visit the
non-profit IMCCA microsite
to get links to videos, advice, etc. on how to use these tools.) One thing that everyone doesn’t realize is
that while these conferencing and collaboration tools are great for business, but
now that they’re free, they’re also great to use to stay in touch with friends and
relatives. Go to www.zoom.us or www.bluejeans.com
or www.gotomeeting.com or www.teams.microsoft.com or www.webex.com or any of the others, sign up for
free while they’re letting you, and schedule a video call with anyone and
everyone. Some great suggestions can
include co-workers that you miss seeing every-day, extended family, friends, or
anyone. How about having a virtual lunch
with ten to twenty colleagues stuck at home?
How about a virtual play-date or birthday party for your kids? How about evening cocktails with those two
couples you usually have drinks with. If
you don’t use these tools every day like I do you’ll be amazed both at how easy
most are to use and how much less alone you’ll feel after spending time with people
you care about.
·
Funny
post of the week is from a few colleagues posting floor-plans of their house,
pondering their weekend travel plans. “My
wife and I are considering visiting the attic for a quick, weekend get-away…”
·
If
there wasn’t enough reason to vote every US office holder out once this crisis
is over, let’s keep an eye on how much they give away to prop-up the airlines
(which is bound to happen) while getting nothing in return. If they don’t demand concessions – like no
more stock buy-backs, no more change fees, reasonable room for coach seating,
etc. – then none of them should be re-elected – ever.
·
Now
is a fair time to bring up the proven scientific term Natural Selection. Paraphrased, it represents the undisputable
fact that those that are best able to adapt generally survive into subsequent
generations, and those that are least able to adapt do not get the opportunity
to create offspring, and thusly die-off more rapidly. Think of that when you see people taking
selfies at the edge of a cliff, see spring-break partiers in Florida, or see
idiots advocating/attending rallies and parties when there is a deadly pandemic
going around. That’s clearly Natural Selection
at work, with a pandemic speeding up the process. Perhaps it will eventually have a positive
effect on our elections when only smarter people are around to vote. I’ve honestly been advocating this for
years. Taking obvious warning labels off
of household items (don’t put the plastic bag over your head, don’t stand on
the top rung of the ladder, don’t aim the kitchen knife at yourself, etc.) would
also have been a good first start at speeding this up.
·
Now
that there are much fewer people driving to stores to go shopping, the next
chance you get for a mini road-trip, you should take a drive to your local
Trader Joes. It will be the only time in
your life it will be easy to park in their terrible lots with tiny spaces. (Of course, don’t get out of your car.) We have to find joy wherever we can in this
crisis.
As always please feel free to write to me with comments or
items I should add to a future Not Traveling blog (or if you just need someone
to write to.) Stay safe, be well, hug
those you’re sheltering with (but no one else) and do your best to stay
positive. We’re going to be in this for
a long while. IMHO anybody who thinks
this will only be going on for a couple of weeks isn’t paying attention.
This article was written by David Danto and contains solely his own, personal
opinions.
All image and links provided above as reference under
prevailing fair use statutes.