I'm the keeper of the blog schedule, and yet, this morning when I should have been putting the finishing touches on it and sending it on its way, I was reading McKinsey & Co. articles about managing through COVID fatigue — managing oneself, that is, as well as managing others. One of the first things to go in my life has been a sense of time, when every day feels like the one before it and the one to come, as my oversight clearly demonstrates.

I can fix that, of course. I can set up a better calendar and push notifications to remind me that not every day is exactly like the one before and the one after; some days have blog deadlines. That won't address the larger, more existential issue of finding the emotional and physical wherewithal to get up and give it my all every day. And by "it", I mean not just the job, but family, the house, friends, exercise, proper diet and so on. There's a lot of "it" in everybody's lives.

In that vein, I found McKinsey's advice gave me a boost. Tactically, the articles aren't ground-breaking: When managers ask employees how they're doing, really listen to the answers. Lead by example and set limits to the length of your workday and take the time off you've earned (and turn off that smartphone!). Don't gloss over the hurdles the company faces in an effort to buoy spirits; managers are more credible and foster more trust if they temper the cheerleading with some real-life acknowledgements in difficult times.

What did strike me was the theme of self-disclosure running through the articles. To be honest, I don't know many valued employees who also talk to their bosses like they do their therapists. Personally, I don't want to know that much about colleagues' personal lives — although, as the McKinsey articles point out, perhaps I need to know that much, and perhaps you do, too.

In my world, the end of the calendar year is always frenetic because writers and editors are working on the first issues of the new year. This year is especially stressful because we're working to launch our new Alt-Meat brand across a number of channels simultaneously: print, online, podcasting and events. And, meanwhile, we continue to produce quality coverage of the meat industry in Meatingplace in all of its forms. It's exciting and fun, and I'm enjoying every minute of it.

But it's taking a lot of minutes. As of Wednesday, Dec. 16, our house has no holiday decorations up at all. Zero. Nada. We're totally dark. No, I'm not the only person in the house who can do it, but I've always led the charge, so to speak. But not this year, and yeah, I feel like I'm letting my family and my community down (you should see some of the beautiful lights on the homes on our street). And that stresses me out more than anything.

Does acknowledging that make me a better manager and employee? You'd have to ask my colleagues, and I'd be interested to hear the answers. But I believe that McKinsey's advice in this case could make a huge difference in a business such as meat production and processing. The stereotype of the taciturn farmer stretches into the meat plant, in my experience. After all, this is the business that coined the phrase, "sell it or smell it."

And of course, it bears repeating that the meat industry has had a more stressful roller-coaster ride of a year than many other industries.

So tell me: How are you managing differently as the pandemic nears its one-year anniversary? Are you managing differently, and why (or why not)? What signs of fatigue have you seen in your ranks — a spike in absenteeism, lack of participation, sloppy work from a normally meticulous employee? What have you done about them? Do you feel that disclosing your own personal concerns and stressors would have a positive or negative effect in your workplace?

I almost forgot about this blog

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