Operationalizing guard rails, or, how are you preparing for the US election?

A few years ago, one of our team members proposed a new day off for us… the day after the election.

That’s right, not the day of the election, but the day after, as it’s then that we need time to process the results.

We’ve had this “holiday” in place for a few years now, and right now I’m so glad we did.

Sure we could have decided at any time to take this day off, but planning it in as a standard means that a) we don’t have any meetings scheduled for this day that we need to reschedule (we book up sometimes 6 months in advance) and b) we don’t need to be making the decision to take the day off on a case-by-case basis, in this case, on a year-by-year basis.

We take the day, regardless of what type of an election year it is.

Now I’m not saying everyone should take this day - this is a need specifically tailored although I’m sure not unique to our team.

The point is that when we operationalize guardrails like this, they are there when we need them. It’s kind of like doing regular fire safety drills, or going to an annual check-up with your doctor, or practicing mindfulness even when you aren’t particularly stressed out, or wiping down the dining table after every meal, whether there is a mess or not.

The other point is… what are you doing to prepare for the US election from a work perspective? Maybe you can’t close the office entirely on November 6th but are there big meetings or deadlines that should be moved? Have you asked your team what they might need?

We’re just a few days away but it’s not too late.

Banner photo by Miraxh Tereziu on Unsplash

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