*Tech note: our sound is more hollow than usual in this episode. Endeavouring to improve for next time!*

One of the biggest shifts that we have noticed during these COVID times is the acceptance and understanding that employees have personal lives outside of work. Before COVID, many of us would be mortified if our child or pet made a peep (or even worse, appeared) in the background of a video call; we wouldn’t dream of wearing the same sweatshirt to work three days in a row, and we would feel uncomfortable saying that we had to wrap up a call to attend to a personal matter.

And then COVID-19 happened. Suddenly we all seemed to be more understanding of one another’s personal situations, and in fact, the appearance of the pet is often the meeting highlight!

That got us thinking about work personas and how much we bring of ourselves to the workplace.

Key Takeaways:

“Bringing our whole selves to work” is relative! Individuals are going to be more or less open depending on their personalities, their feeling of safety, their cultural backgrounds, self-confidence in their abilities, etc.
It’s important to think about what is defined as “professional” and whether or not it needs a rewrite. (Yes, yes it does.)
And still, showing up as your whole self can make you look like a jerk! Watch out for the over-share. Don’t make it all about you...intention doesn’t mitigate impact.