As hope for a vaccine begins to become more real and a glimpse of what could be a return to something more normal, we have the chance to not only return to what we had before, but to improve on what we do and how we do it. In short, we need to create a present that is less focused on the here and now, and build an existence where the future is just as important as the present.

So much of the resistance happening now to everything designed to keep us safe is rooted in the need for instant gratification that dominates society right now. If we can think about the possibilities the future holds, it makes it much easier to make needed sacrifices now.

Of course, that’s easy for someone like me to say. I’m fortunate to be stable in all areas of life right now. It’s not as easy for those struggling to make ends meet or even to survive from day-to-day. This pause in our normal life has only exasperated the chasm between the haves and the have-nots in our society. This is not good for anyone. We have done an admirable job in privatizing the benefits of our hard work while getting the risk more spread out. This is leading to greater inequities, which do not move us toward any type of sustainable future.

There is a direct impact to the work that HR does in all of this. The demand for a skilled workforce is increasing even faster than the supply of workers with college degrees. This results in rising wage inequality by education levels, and companies facing a skills gap.

So, my challenge to you for 2021 is as follows. What is one thing you can do through your work that creates a present that is focused on the future? 

This is one of those times where my day job and my interest in politics come together. As has happened in many states, the legislature here in Michigan, in all their wisdom, has come forth and mandated an evaluation system for the teachers in our state. Like many other states, the focus is less on creating a road map for improvement (which is what I like to see in an employee evaluation) and more on ensuring that someone is held accountable for the success and/or failure of those being taught. There are so many things wrong with the process as mandated that its legitimacy is easy to question.

I feel very fortunate to work in a District that takes this responsibility seriously and currently has a process that has some forward looking elements so that our professionals in the classroom can continue to grow and improve their craft.  We have excellent teachers who (mostly) want to improve and build upon their knowledge and skills. I fear as the momentum toward growth measures becomes a reality, that real conversations that take place around improvement will yield to chats about testing and preparing students for the high stakes tests that now can not only determine a student’s potential path, but their teacher’s path forward as well.

For those complaining about an appraisal you received at work, remember it can be worse; the government could have designed it!

The discussion began when a student inquired about handling an employee situation after someone has done something wrong yet they insist that they’re right. After joking that a situation like that would never happen because HR is always right, I shared a story that affected me.  Without sharing the lurid details here, the story was about me being accused of doing something that I did not do. Rather than argue and hold hostility to those involved, there was reflection on the things that I had done in relation to the situation as well as the things that I had not done that could have prevented the misperception from occurring in the first place.  In short, it still benefitted me to learn from the situation and get better so that I would not be in the position again where I could be wrongly accused.

Even when one is not wrong and is still being accused, there is always room to improve. I reminded the group that learning from a negative situation can provide great dividends moving forward and that many of my most valuable lessons had come from the mistakes I’ve made, not the immediate successes.  Had I simply been bitter about being accused and reacted in a hostile manner, it is likely that the lessons learned would not be as positive and I would not have gotten better moving forward. To simplify it, it is important to get better, not bitter.