I saw a terrific piece from HBR about how we should look for a series of little things that we can all do together to mitigate the challenges of Covid-19 rather than waiting for a moon shot to solve the problem. The article suggests things ranging from hand-washing to additional cleaning protocols to contact tracing to staying home when sick.
I see this as a much more immediate solution to getting back to “normal” than just hoping that we have a vaccine in the next 12 months. It’s going to require a big shift in how we all interact with each other but I think they can get us back into the swing of things quickly.
The trick is that we all have to be willing to work together. This can’t turn into a partisan fight about our “rights” or allowing ourselves to be bullied into risky behavior by people without the patience or inclination to play by the rules. It also means that we may end up surrendering some of our privacy as technology helps track our movements and helps with contact tracing.
I’m as live-and-let-live as much as the next person. And I want to see the economy reopen. But I don’t think it’s productive to open the economy if a whole subsegment of the population doesn’t feel safe. That just feels like a recipe for disaster and an economy in perpetual stall.
If getting back to normal means we have to play by a new set of rules, so be it. Let’s figure out how to work together, get comfortable with a new set of rules, and get back to living.
samuelhorowitz.com 