None of us were pre-equipped with a pandemic playbook, and like it or not, we’ve had to rapidly adjust our businesses and ask a lot from our teams along the way. As a leader, I’ve grown from this experience and expanded my learning in a few key areas that may resonate with owners and operators of aesthetic practices.TAKE THE TIME NEEDED TO PERSONALLY CONNECT WITH YOUR TEAM MEMBERS When running a business, the customer (or patient) typically gets the most attention, and the staff receives the least. That’s why they’re paid, right? This is in fact entirely backwards, your staff is first, customers are second, as Richard Branson counseled (before the pandemic):It sort of should go without saying—and it’s surprising that it still doesn’t go without saying at some companies—if the person who works at your company is 100 percent proud of the job they’re doing, if you give them the tools to do a good job, they’re proud of the brand, if they were looked after, if they’re treated well, then they’re gonna be smiling, they’re gonna be happy and therefore the customer will have a nice experience.ADAPT DONT ABANDON At RealSelf, our CTO makes his staff first by making it a point to check in on people, especially those who aren’t his direct reports, to discuss work or just whatever is on their minds. He isn’t the boss in these conversations, rather, he is an eye-to-eye peer that shares his own vulnerabilities and relates to the stresses that COVID-19 has brought into all of our lives. This engenders trust-building and greater engagement from his team and makes people proud to be part of the company.

A friend recently referred to this past year as Annus horribilis (Latin for a disastrous or unfortunate year), as she explained that 2020 has not allowed her to feel the firm ground below her feet. We’ve seen this consternation among our team members too; they crave stability and moments of “I’ve seen this before. I’ve got it.” They are exhausted by the headlines, political discourse, and new constraints on their lives.Coming from this place of understanding, we’ve strived at RealSelf to overcome instability by providing continuity around important experiences and events. We’ve adapted vs. abandoned our rituals. For instance, our holiday party isn’t cancelled due to COVID-19. We’re still having it, virtually, at the same time as each prior year with activities that give the staff a way to feel connected, recognized for their efforts, and remaining optimistic about the coming year. Another pre-COVID norm at our office in Seattle was meeting in a large open work area, or commons, that served as a hub for casual connections and informal gatherings. We didn’t abandon this concept with our office closure, but instead we now maintain a gathering area on Zoom where you can find peers and surprises like a cat cam featuring a team member’s adorable feline.MAKE SPECIAL ACCOMODATIONS FOR PARENTS AND CAREGIVERSWith a workforce that is 90 percent female, Mary Fisher, CEO of Colorescience, shared with me in my recent podcast that the biggest thing for her, ongoing, was, “understanding how each member of the team is processing these [pandemic-driven] changes, and what else are they going through in the face of this.” From direct conversations with employees, our company leaders have learned that the pandemic acutely affects our parent-employees, who are struggling with aligning work schedules while their kids stay home to attend school. They needed our help but weren’t sure how to ask for it.Recent research has shown that mothers and fathers are indeed uncomfortable speaking up, fearful of losing their jobs or being seen as less impactful than their peers. Meanwhile, at home, they are realizing a real burden from COVID-19. Boston Consulting Group reported across the globe parents have nearly doubled their time spent on domestic demands, such as at-home education, due to the virus.One step we took to overcome this fear was to anonymously survey parents on our team, asking feedback-related questions like, “What suggestions do you have for RealSelf on ways we can best support you during the school year?” With these insights, we’ve made it very clear with our managers that they need to make adjustments, such as the timing of staff meetings, so they didn’t collide with remote schooling schedules. As the pandemic continues, I am prepared for the fact that we will need to continue to make accommodations for our parent-employees.Written by Tom Seery, Founder and Executive Chairman of RealSelf.com