Lessons Learned from the COVID-19 Pandemic

Recently I had the opportunity to talk in several podcasts with banking specialists and online specialists. We talked about the pandemic, about what happened this year and how we can better prepare for the times of crisis in the future.

Below I have gathered a few lessons that I’ve learned from the Covid-19 pandemic:

The world is changing much faster than we realize

Just a year ago, we couldn’t have imagined that we would be stuck in the house. Not only those on our street, not in the city, not even our fellow citizens. But the whole planet.

However, this is exactly what happened. And this led to a series of changes in the chain, negatively affecting those who were “tied” to a physical place. And to the advantage of those who had developed work flexibility.

But we’ve been talking about the digital environment for years. We all expected to migrate “there” someday. Today, however, we are already in the process of “forced” migration and the world is changing faster than we would have imagined.

And that brings us to the second point:

The importance of being flexible and open to the new

Those who already had a number of flexible mentalities of mind, who were open to doing things differently than they had done before, benefited. Because

The only constant thing is change.

Heraclitus

Whoever ignored the digital environment in the last 10 years is now starting to receive the bill. Who, for example, refused to embrace new online applications and working methods… well now got stuck, with suspended activity, with low income (or no income).

Which is a little ironic, because embracing change

You can save time and money if you are open to doing things differently than before

Change can generally be uncomfortable. Because we need to give up something we knew and embrace something unknown.

For example, you are used to always going to the counter to solve certain things, that’s just what you’ve been doing for decades. Whether it’s paying your taxes, requesting an account statement or opening an investment account and investing your small savings in stocks.

But things changed and all the 3 examples listed by me I did both in the old version and in the new one:

• to stop queuing at the counter to pay taxes (or fines) I learned to do it online;
• in order not to go to the bank counter to take an account statement and take it to the accountant, I learned to generate it online and send it by email;
• and I discovered that although many years ago when I bought shares I was going and writing a hand request in this regard… well now it is online and I no longer need to leave my laptop.

And, even if we initially need to learn something new, the learning curve is fast and things are relatively simple. And after you’ve learned to do that, you find out that:

1. It takes you less time to do the same thing.
2. It is, in fact, simpler and with less effort.
3. You have less frustration sitting in queues.
4. Many times it is simply cheaper and you save commissions.

Because:

We are moving more and more towards a digital world

And that brings countless opportunities and benefits, but – like many changes – it will probably bring challenges.

Maybe you remember the days of the ’90s or 2000s when phones were buttoned (if they were), when the internet was on dial-up (on the landline phone) and when if you wanted to find someone you looked in the Yellow Pages .

Now you can do almost everything online, in a few keys. You obviously need to develop your ability to document yourself, to filter information and to make optimal decisions for your future:

• Do I want to find relatives I’ve lost contact with for 20 years? I find them on Facebook or Linkedin (real case for me).
• Do I want to start a company in the UK, Germany or the United States? I find online companies that offer this service and solve everything remotely. (real case too)
• I want to open an account for the above company… obviously in the country where I founded it and without going there? There are banks that offer this service, you open an account for your company, you collect the invoices there, you have a card and you can make payments as well. No need to go to the counter, you have a support service that always helps you.
• Do I want to hire one-off collaborators, be they programmers, designers, writers or anything else? Online there are services like Upwork or Freelancer for such a thing, where freelancers compete for your projects.

And if we accept that, it becomes an advantage. This is because the crisis has put us in the situation of not being able to do things the same way.

For example, in the banking environment it becomes important to know how to do

DIY (Do-It Yourself) in banking

Years ago I started an outside company. Not because I wanted to, but out of pragmatism. I already had clients, receipts and if I had a company there the taxes were significantly lower.

Then – I said above – I needed an account at a bank in that country many thousands of miles away. And I didn’t have time to go there to open it or do banking.

It was years ago and I did everything online. At that time in our country there was no such thing. In Romania, if you wanted a bank account, you were supposed to go there, fill in a hand application, sign it, make a copy of your identity card, possibly company documents, etc. The account was usually done on the spot, and the online service was active in a few hours or the next day.

Obviously this was from 9 to 18, Monday through Friday.

Fortunately, in the meantime, things have changed in our country, and today you can do it easily and quickly. As a result, you can either accept the digital world and use it to help you, or ignore it. In the first case you adapt and prosper to the next crisis. In the second case, the next crisis will affect you.

Now it’s your turn

What have you learned from COVID-19 pandemic? Tell us your opinion, leave a comment on this article.

I hope you found this article helpful. If so, please like and share it! If you feel it, you can leave a comment, otherwise you can contact me!