Recently, I attended two events that reminded me why Zoom is killing all that makes us human.
The first was an Allied Arts OKC Arts Agency Relations dinner. This group, ArtForce, meets once a month to connect with their agencies on a personal level. Instead of doing business behind desks, they put together a social gathering and then attend a performance or exhibit together. This allows them to personally experience art while enhancing relationships, too. Fellowship first, then work.
The second was a grand opening for Limbs for Life Foundation. They provide prosthetics to people who can't afford them and bring awareness to the challenges that amputees face. They scheduled the grand opening for a time when several recipients of the prosthetics were in town, and it felt more personal.
This is what you lose when everything goes remote.
Real community forms when you're physically with other people. There's an energy that just doesn't exist on a screen.
I've been on boards that went fully remote during COVID and never came back. Everyone got so used to the convenience that they forgot what they were missing.
When you're only doing business through Zoom, you become soulless desk people. You lose the humanity.
Why volunteer your time just to check boxes? I’d rather do it because I care about something.
But that passion gets diluted when you can't look someone in the eye or grab a drink after the meeting.
Remote work has its place. But if you want to build something that matters, you need to be close to other people.
