You Don’t Have to be Alone to be Lonely

You don’t have to be alone to be lonely.

This past year plus has taught many of us about the pain of isolation, about how much we need social connection to survive.

For a long time, I perpetually struggled to feel connected despite the fact that I was constantly surrounded by people, and my guess is that plenty of folks are feeling this way.

However, just because we return to an office (that is, if your company plans to return to in-person work) doesn’t mean that people aren’t still craving meaningful human interaction. After all, being in close proximity with others doesn’t necessarily mean that we feel connected to others on a deeper level.

Whether your company plans to remain fully remote, move back to being completely in-office, or a hybrid of the two, the feeling of loneliness isn’t going away.

In a time when isolation feels so prevalent, how can we help people feel a sense of belonging?

What can we do as leaders to foster meaningful relationships despite being more disconnected than ever?