3 Warm-Ups You Need Because Things Are Still Messy and We Are Still Humans
Words by Olivia Vagelos and Jayme Brown. Art by May Kodama
This past year was certainly shit, was it not? And while we hope that you took the solstice, new year, great conjunction, inauguration [insert any phase change you would like to pay homage to here] to refill your fuel tank, cathartically burn your anger in a raging bonfire, and find eternal peace and happiness…we’re guessing that the first weeks of this year (see: white supremacist coup in the United States, record coronavirus numbers etc. etc.) have you, like us, entering 2021 with a whole lot of feelings.
And yet somehow we will be expected to show up on our Zooms, to adhere to our calendars, to fill in the cells of our spreadsheets, to bring our creative selves to bear on those “important” and shiny new strategic priorities.
Pause. Before you begin, before you assume your team is refreshed and ready to go, before you ask people to focus on the work — take the moment to go slow. We urge you, and we beg of you. Honor your people as humans with emotions and complexities and fears and creative brilliance yet to be celebrated. We believe every collaborative meeting needs a warm-up. In this moment, it’s perhaps more necessary than ever.
Use these three warm-ups to support yourself and your team, because it’s a new year and we still got shit to do.
1. Name it
Instructions: Before you get started, ask people to grab a piece of paper. Have them take a minute silently for themselves to capture what they are bringing into this moment, emotionally. Perhaps it is anxiety for the safety of their loved ones. Perhaps it is frenetic energy looking for a place to be put to productive action. Perhaps it is grief over the wedding they were supposed to be planning. Perhaps it is calm, having just stepped outside for some air.
Whatever it is, give them a moment to write it down. If it feels good for your group, ask folks to share one small piece that they are comfortable being open about. If that doesn’t feel right, explore what else might, like having everyone take 30 seconds to silently honor and acknowledge those emotions or encouraging folks to rip up, throw away, or tape up their piece of paper in their space.
Thank people, and have everyone take a breath together.
Why this works: Many people don’t believe that emotions are appropriate at work. We call bullshit, and we’re certainly not alone. Whether or not you name it, people are coming in with feelings. We’re not saying it will always be comfortable when folks are candid about where they’re at. In fact, it likely won’t, considering the emotional landscape many are navigating is a topography of rage, grief, exhaustion, and loneliness. But asking folks to ignore those feelings, glossing over them by saying “Yeah, okay strange times, but anyways, this deadline coming up...” will lead to burnout, emotional exhaustion, and facsimiles of humanness. You will not be able to unlock the creative potential of those around you if you don’t acknowledge all of what they are bringing with them.
2. Find a bit of light
Instructions: Ask the question “What is one thing you have gratitude for?” and have folks reflect, sketch their response on a piece of scrap paper or a sticky note, and then share back with the group.
Why this works: Note that this is not the same as pretending everything is fine. Or cheerfully forcing folks to be glass-half-full, when, as our dear friend recently put it, we are living in a literal flaming trash circus. Instead, this is a moment for folks to pull on that which is giving them strength — to remind themselves that there are relationships, people, and spaces that can inspire hope. Gratitude honors, rather than ignores, the context.
3. Reorient to purpose
Instructions: Give folks a moment to turn off their video camera, take a deep breath, and ground themselves in the questions: “What gets you up in the morning? Why are you here? What meaning does this work have for you?” Encourage them to jot it down on paper — mode switching to a physical medium can give the brain a helpful breather.
Why this works: For some, perhaps the answer is that the work aligns with their values and their aspirations. For others, maybe it is the financial security it enables them to provide for their family. Whatever it is, in a moment when the ground feels fundamentally unstable, help your people find their anchors. In these moments of collective existential anxiety, small tasks and the quotidienne of work can feel particularly meaningless. Take the time to zoom out, step back, and reorient to the big picture.
So again, we implore you: pause.
We are struggling. We are all struggling. Yet it is precisely this — our resilience, our resistance, our complexities, our intersectionalities, that is our greatest gift to bring to designing a brighter future. Invite our struggles in. They are needed.
