Jawaharlal Nehru once said, “Crisis and deadlocks when they occur have at least this advantage, they force us to think.” This pandemic did just that. While this is a time we would never want to revisit, it has raised billions of questions and given us a few answers that need to be kept in mind. Now, let us explore the life lessons from the pandemic that we’ve learned.
Table of Contents
The Difference between Needs and Wants
Needs and wants are two words we use interchangeably. The pandemic has shown us a clear difference in needs and wants. It has taught us what we really require to survive and how our whims or wants do not make a huge difference. It has taught us we can easily live without a pizza, without watching a movie in the theatre or catching up with friends over drinks, all the things we thought we needed. Humans really do not need an awful lot to survive.
Be Mindful
An elastic band is bound to snap if you stretch it too much. For decades and centuries, we have endlessly exploited our planet. It needed a breather. The pain we have induced on our resources is never going to be relieved, but this pandemic did show Earth relished being left alone for a while. Swans returning to the waters of Venice, Dolphins returning to Mumbai seas, being graced with the most alluring sunsets are just a few signs.
Corona Virus crisis made us realize how we took the simplest things in our lives for granted. How we took people for granted. The activities we did on a daily basis, without giving them a second thought seem like a lifetime before. One thing we need to take away from this pandemic is being mindful. Use everything with care and express gratitude.
Slow Down a Little
We like our lives and internet speed fast. What we fail to realize is, the faster we run, the more likely we are to crash. We never thought we needed a break. This pandemic, we must do a little lesser, spend a little more time with families doing nothing. The skies look prettier nowadays, probably they always did but we never had time to admire. Once our lives go back to normal, we should consciously learn to take it slower, since we now know, more than ever, what uncertainty really feels like.
The Correct Use of Technology
Undoubtedly, technology is keeping us remotely sane during the pandemic. It has brought the world together, where we are fighting for social causes and rights, raising our voices and bringing things to notice, sitting on our couches. Being able to talk to people face to face, getting an online education, and in general, knowing what is going on around us while physically being indoors would have been unthinkable in any other previous decade. The face of the world has changed considerably, the way we buy or sell things, consume things, and even protest has changed due to technology, and all of us as individuals and businesses, young or old must learn to embrace it for our own benefits.
Rediscovering Ourselves
People revisited activities that gave them simple pleasures in the pandemic. Artists picked up their brushes, cooks entered kitchens, writers started their blogs. The pandemic has brought us closer to ourselves, and taught us a lot about our own selves. It is imperative that we do not abandon this knowledge and keep doing what we rediscovered when things get better.
Maybe we did need a crisis to get to know ourselves. We have committed a few grave mistakes along the way, as a society and as individuals. But now is the time to learn from those mistakes and employ our knowledge to make the world a better place.
