WHAT CAN ASTRONAUTS TEACH US ABOUT RECOVERY AND RE-ENTRY AFTER THE CORONA CRISIS?
Quite a lot actually.
As we start to think about the road out of isolation and what that will mean for workplaces, here’s a link to a superb article with surprisingly useful and transferable learnings from astronauts returning from solo missions on the International Space Station.
“Our own re-entry is likely to be similarly disorienting. After months of Zoom meetings and virtual happy hours, it might be-at least in the first few moments-a sensory shock to see so many people in three dimensions.”
Of course, astronauts choose to sign up for a mission with concrete parameters. They prepare and train for it, are paid, and have a superbly resourced team of “mission control” experts to support them every step of the way.
BUT
They also deal with big unknowns, risk, fear and loneliness-and the challenge of returning and reintegrating to “normality” after a long period of self-sufficiency in a self-contained world.
Their experiences show that re-entry, whilst exciting, is an extended process of adjustment, reflection, recalibration and, for many, reinvention.
Awareness, connection, support, positivity and taking “one step at a time” will be essential for us, too.