Until recently, our world was largely normal. We went to work, met with family, friends or customers, were able to move freely and made holiday plans. Covid-19 came creeping along, China and Wuhan were far away at first, until the virus hit us with unexpected force. Now suddenly everything is very quiet, Corona forces the economy and social coexistence to its knees.

As a rule, people are afraid of real danger. However, for the vast majority of us the virus is not a real threat, because we cannot see it and are therefore afraid of what is presented to us by the media or reactions of others. The uncertainty of not knowing how to behave correctly in this situation is very hard on us: we are afraid, overwhelmed and insecure. The uncertainty that no one knows when life will return to "normal" also increases our fears. Uncertainty is a condition that we humans find difficult to cope with. Because we like to have certainty about what is coming.

In this situation, many managers are faced with the question of how they can relieve their employees' fears and at the same time provide them with support, because Covid-19 has thrown the rules of the game into confusion in our everyday work. 

It is important to understand social distancing only as a physical distance, and not to distance oneself socially. This means that while every employee is at home, managers and teams must still maintain contact with their colleagues. Any form of virtual contact is helpful for cohesion, the closer to personal contact, the better. Regular appointments, meetings and votes should best be held via video conference, but at least over the phone to maintain team balance and keep in touch. 

Managers can thus better see how their employees are doing and whether they are coping with the situation. Offer employees virtual activities beyond business collaboration to strengthen social contact. These can be sporty challenges, a competition for the sunniest workplace or an after-work online party. There are no limits to your creativity, involve your employees and ask them for their ideas!

Managers must be particularly aware of their duty of care in these times. It is now particularly important to offer employees support and motivate them. If employees are concerned about the current situation, open and empathic communication can help prevent panic and provide security. Through accessibility, managers strengthen the trust of their employees and at the same time demonstrate accessibility.

It is helpful here to define clear rules of conduct for everyone in the team regarding availability. It must be ensured that working hours and rest periods are also observed when working from home. A blurring of leisure and work must be avoided at all costs in order to be able to consciously end the working day in the home office.

Planning the working day in advance, even in the home office, protects against the feeling of loss of control and helplessness. Give your team structure and planning security by adjusting the individual target agreements according to the new framework conditions and setting progress in feasible time intervals. 

This not only gives managers more transparency about the performance of their home office employees, but also makes team members feel understood and know which topics to prioritize and how.