How will coronavirus affect your job?

Is it all coronavirus, all the time for you?

Right now, for at least the short term, it probably should be. You’re already living that, so that’s not what I’m writing you about this week.

Instead, I’m inviting you to take the long view. As you magnify your responsibilities related to communications around this crisis, you should do one more thing. Spend at least part of every day asking the question, “Where do we need to be when this crisis is no longer urgent?”

You’ve got plenty of voices pushing you on urgent matters. And those should be your priority. But even though it’s hard to see right now, someday this crisis will pass. Someday, you’ll have announcements and issues you’ll be striving to earn media coverage for. And there will be media who are no longer distracted by the virus (and the election and the stock market).

How are you positioning yourself and your company for that day? What can you do this week – for just a little bit of time – to be better ready for that day?

I gently suggest two things:

– Continue to follow and engage with journalists and influencers who could be covering you in the future. Even if now isn’t the right time to pitch them.

– Find ways to stretch yourself and extend your learning. New strategies will be born in the coming months – you could be a part of them. I know you won’t exploit anyone’s suffering, but if you’re too distracted by the crisis, you might miss an opportunity once the sense of emergency recedes.