Last week, people awoke to the news of countries closing borders and companies sending home their employees. Our team was lucky. We felt virtually no disruption because we’ve been working 100% remotely for five years. I’ve been doing it personally for seven. We realized that we have benefited from many of the lessons that working remotely had taught us; most especially that being a good neighbor can happen without physical proximity.
Critics have challenged this notion for years, claiming that a remote team cannot possibly be as close as a team that physically works together. Yet we are living proof that physical proximity is not what determines close relationships, innovation, or success.
Sharing those lessons felt like the right thing to do, and in the midst of writing an email with a quote from Mr. Rogers on how neighbors help others, we had an epiphany.
Specifically, what would happen if we all decided to be good digital helpers? “Look for the Helpers.” It’s a term that seems to be shared ravenously on digital media the moment we are faced with something scary. Critics have referred to it as a consolation meme for tragedy and even decried it for trying to over-simplify adult ‘complex’ issues into a term meant for children.
“When I was a boy and I would see scary things in the news, my mother would say to me, ‘Look for the helpers. You will always find people who are helping.’” - Fred Rogers
Yet, it persists (especially during times like these) for one simple reason. There’s a profound truth that when tragedy is striking, we need to know what to do, and we all want to know that there are indeed people who are helping. Perhaps, as we watch the unprecedented closing of countries, we feel a level of childlike helplessness, and the advice from Mr. Rogers is exactly what we all need to hear.
"All of us, at some time or other, need help. Whether we're giving or receiving help, each one of us has something valuable to bring to this world. That's one of the things that connects us as neighbors--in our own way, each one of us is a giver and a receiver."
As you look through the news and social media right now, your screen will be filled with many headlines that can feel terrifying for your business. We decided to look for the digital helpers and found some wonderful moments, including Mark Cuban’s offer of free advice to LinkedIn members with small businesses, followed by other good neighbors who showed up to help. With over 98,000 businesses sharing their anxieties and worries, it was wonderful to see a business leader helping. It was also encouraging to see the number of people that started helping others who hadn’t received a response to their cry for help.
Mr. Rogers provided plenty of episodes on what it takes to be a good neighbor. We’ve assembled some of our favorite quotes from Mr. Rogers as guidelines to help you be a good digital citizen during this difficult season.
"In times of stress, the best thing we can do for each other is to listen with our ears and our hearts and to be assured that our questions are just as important as our answers."
"If you could only sense how important you are to the lives of those you meet; how important you can be to the people you may never even dream of. There is something of yourself that you leave at every meeting with another person."
"Real strength has to do with helping others."
"How many times have you noticed that it's the little quiet moments in the midst of life that seem to give the rest extra-special meaning?"
"Often when you think you're at the end of something, you're at the beginning of something else."
What does that look like for the InspireHUB team? It means...