In a lot of the conversations I’ve been in lately endings and beginnings have been a recurring theme. Now, at this time of year that’s not uncommon. For those of us who work in higher education our academic year is ending, planning for the next one is already underway, and our students are in finals. Many are also preparing to end this chapter of their story and in turn begin the next one as a university graduate. And of course, we are literally in Spring, when new life and possibilities (if you’ll forgive the pun) bloom.
It was this reference to nature that brought to mind Disney’s Moana. Okay, well not so much the movie but rather the most important symbol within it that speaks to my theme this week. That symbol is called the Koru, which you can see in the header of my post this week.
In Māori language, Koru means “loop” and is a spiral shape that symbolizes new life, growth, strength and peace. Its shape also helps to convey the idea of perpetual movement while the inner coil suggests a return to the point of origin (i). To me, this symbol is a strong metaphor for knowing who we each are and what’s most important to us, and I think this is going to be particularly important in a post-pandemic reality.
Over the last year, many of the people I know, follow or whose work I read have talked not only about the significant challenges and toll of the pandemic, but how people during it have found better balance and more time for self and family, have reconnected with interests from different periods of their lives and taken on new hobbies, and have finally done that one thing they said they would “one day when they had time.” With this in mind, what was most important to each of us before the pandemic may have evolved. We’ve been introduced to new ways of living and working, and to new ways of being ourselves. There’s also a lot of conversations occurring about what’s being referred to as the turnover tsunami, as people look to make significant changes in their lives and in turn begin new chapters of their stories.
So, what is this week’s takeaway? While I recognize this is a large and complex topic, here are three questions I think could be important to consider:
- As you think about your post-pandemic work life, what is most important to you, and who do you need to communicate these thoughts/wants to?
- What is something over the last year you have started or reconnected to that brings you joy and how will you continue to make space for it going forward?
- When you think about this next chapter of your story, what do you want to see happen and how will you make it a reality?
Coming Up Next on the #WhatsYourSparkBlog
Next Tuesday guest blogger Jocelyn Spurr writes about the importance of building a strong culture of trust in the teams we’re part of.