How I Managed My Growing Company while Being COVID-19 Positive

I received a positive COVID-19 test result on December 9th. I was working from home and had avoided socializing for months, but the virus reached me through my daughter’s kindergarten.

Staying isolated for a couple of weeks wasn’t going to be a problem. Still, the timing for getting sick was unfortunate. Everyone who has ever led a company knows how hectic the end of the year can be. Budget planning, yearly reports, and employee review meetings can be stressful even when you’re healthy, let alone when you’re ailing.

It was already enough of a challenge to lead a rapidly growing company with all my team working from home. It became a gargantuan task when I found that I was COVID-19 positive.

Despite being sick, I was not able to fully “switch off” out of handling my own company. Desk Time is a productivity monitoring software that’s seen its user count tripled since the onset of the pandemic. Paradoxically, COVID-19 attracted us a growth spurt — and here I was, afflicted by the disorder .

How I Managed My Growing Company While Being COVID-19 Positive

Here, I want to share the attitudes that helped me stay sane while juggling health issues and a rapidly growing company from my home.

1. Being honest with my team

I had not met any group members, or spouses face to face for a little while, so I did not need to be worried about needing infected somebody. But, I wished to become honest with my workers and let them understand what was happening.

My group received the information of my illness together with support and understanding. I believe my honesty encouraged them to become more empathic and take up additional jobs to unburden my program.
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Physical Symptoms

My most important symptoms were fever, and an extreme headache, sensitivity to light, along with a small cough. I misplaced my sense of taste and odor for around fourteen days, along with the cough lasted for five times.

The congestion and headache remained for three times, which was the toughest time. During nowadays, I could just join in on movie calls using our business associates via sound — I could not participate, only listen. I am grateful to my group supervisors who took over the assembly moderation procedure from me.

Working-while-sick could not have worked if I had not been truthful with my group and advised them that I’d need their assistance and support to an unknown period — since nobody could tell just how long this ailment could linger.

2. Setting priorities and delegating

I had been ill, and that I was worried about it, also I had a busy month before me. My Google Calendar was merciless — from December 9 to 22, I’d 32 meetings scheduled. I needed to do some severe prioritizing so as to look after my health while not devoting my responsibilities as CEO.

Clearing my schedule

I removed my program of everything which didn’t absolutely require my participation. Because of this, I worked four hours every day. As my very first priority, I wished to be (nearly) present in most worker annual evaluation meetings. Additionally, I couldn’t postpone finalizing the business budget for 2021.

Delegate

I made a decision to assign annual review meetings with outsourced agencies and employees into the group supervisors. In terms of bookkeeping and other paperwork, then I transferred it to the base of my priority list. This “maintenance mode” helped me stay afloat without falling too far behind on crucial tasks.

Seeing how effectively I could delegate in times of demand made me love my group even more. I feel that this trust should not be taken for granted — it is a basis for success in almost any provider.
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3. Being prepared

We are living in times when anybody can get ill, so it is far better to get strategies in place to ensure work isn’t disrupted in the event a supervisor — or perhaps the CEO — abruptly requires time off.

My business did not come to a standstill as a result of my illness because we have been operating and communicating liberally for nearly annually. Each group member has their annual and monthly objectives, and everybody knows their jobs.

We kept each other current because of routine team requirements and company-wide internet meetings. Irrespective of whether the boss is healthy or sick, the well-oiled machine may electricity work and onwards never ceases.

4. Nurturing a healthy and supportive company culture

Being sick and confined to the house made me realize what matters most – the happiness and well-being of the people on my team. We had been working remotely since the pandemic began in order to stay safe and prevent spreading the virus. But could I do more to reassure my team and support their well-being?

Keep a remote and hybrid work format ready

It is clear to us we will continue to keep a distant or a hybrid format after the pandemic. Our team has adopted the work at home version; at summer we worked out of our summer homes and even while traveling across the nation.

Additionally, I am supporting healthful team-building initiatives, like a calorie-burning challenge using a traveling trophy. In addition, I encourage my group members to plan elastic workdays, such as a walk or a jog through work hours.

Our very own time monitoring software enables us watch on the number of hours we have worked every day, enabling us to trace our personal improvement and fill in the essential work hours once we feel productive.
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COVID-19 – a catalyst for change

Since I felt quite sick for 3 days, my group did not sense my lack. However, COVID and other disorders hang longer. Today I can say I had been blessed to make it through the disease with comparative ease. But this time was filled with emotional stress, and that I came out of it with shifted priorities and eye-opening decisions.

COVID-19 implemented the breaks on the Earth, but it educated us about distinct work formats which might be a secret to better work-life equilibrium for lots of men and women.

If a year past distant work was just a trendy perk some companies could opt to offer; today we are successfully operating from home and other areas where we feel comfortable and safe.