How Can Company Culture Thrive After Covid? The Answer Is Blowing in the Wind
It’s clear that remote work, or a combination of remote- and in-person work, is here to stay. This lasting impact of the pandemic will have positive implications for things like people’s mental, physical, and emotional health (hurray for trading in the commute for time to exercise or see friends!) and the environment (which needs all the TLC we can give it).
Yet having remote or partially remote teams will present some challenges, too. I don’t just mean the “Zoom fatigue” and “You’re on mute” frustrations we’re all-too-familiar with now. I’m thinking about the inevitable strain that remote/hybrid work will put on company culture.
After all, culture is more than just how a business gets things done. It’s the invisible glue that binds the people, mission, and values of a company together. It’s what makes employees at every level feel motivated, appreciated, and connected to a higher purpose. A flourishing company culture brings out the best in everyone and inspires them to do and be their best every single day.
Question is, when in-person interactions are limited or unpredictable, how can company culture thrive? The answer, my friend, is blowing in the wind. Or kayaking down a river. Or hiking through a forest. In other words, the key to keeping culture alive and well in the new model of work is regularly getting teams outside to explore, experience things, and shift their perceptions—together.
At Live Bright Now, we created the School of Adventure + Awe for just this purpose. Our customized programs, which are based around activities like kayaking, rock climbing, or snowshoeing, safely push teams beyond their comfort zone to expand capabilities, competency, and confidence. While we started taking people into the great outdoors long before covid, we believe—more strongly than ever—that adventure and awe truly are good for business.
In fact, neuroscience shows that experiencing adventure and awe while out in nature:
Calms us down, relieves stress, boosts energy, and combats burnout
Cultivates connections
Creates space for reflection, which supercharges curiosity and creativity
Strengthens our relationships with ourselves and others
Connects us to purpose and meaning
Sound like the antidote to Zoom fatigue? It is. On top of that, if there’s anything we’ve learned in the past year, it’s that life is unpredictable. Certainty is an illusion. And we need connection and community more than we realized. That’s why I encourage business leaders to try building (or rebuilding) their teams’ sense of routine, camaraderie, and shared purpose by getting everyone out in nature together. It’s time to discover the magic that’s blowing in the wind!
Want to build a strong culture so teams can connect, collaborate, and communicate better in the post-covid workplace? Get in touch. Plus, sign up to get our newest posts about bright culture, leadership, and more.