A beautiful noise

It’s ironic – and a blessing – how challenging times present opportunities we otherwise might have missed.  A door may close, but a window will open. Or a moment is shared, and we are never quite the same.

In much the same way, social distancing is bringing us closer as we face and share the challenges of our humanity.  School choirs, musicians, and symphony orchestras are finding ways to perform virtually. Museums, theaters, and even zoos are discovering new ways to connect with their audiences.

Who could not fail to be moved by the nightly applause for healthcare and other essential workers in New York, or the tender music wafting from balconies in a besieged Italy? Or when the original cast of Hamilton went on Zoom to sing for a fan.  Or, tragically, when a daughter shared the anguish of staying on her phone for hours so her isolated father would not die alone.

At Advantage, we’ve settled into a cadence of weekly public webinars aimed at helping our clients through these challenging times. We’ve also embraced a weekly Monday meetup and a virtual happy hour on Fridays. Joining each other from across the United States and from as far away as Japan, we’re accustomed to working remotely, but these days we look forward to the extra support and camaraderie.

Our thought leader partner Brent Snow, a regular happy hour participant, recently shared a video with us in which Robbie Robertson, Ringo Starr, and musicians across 5 continents performed “The Weight” – a project that took 2 years of work across 10 countries. It has become a powerful symbol of global unity in the face of today’s pandemic as well as a precursor to the recent efforts hosted by Elton John and Lady Gaga.

“This, to me, is perhaps the music we all collectively get to come together to create for our clients and ourselves,” Snow said. “We’ve been doing it before, but today we are challenged to come together in new virtual ways to do it.”

All of these scenarios remind us we are one world, and because of our shared experiences and virtual connectivity, we are rarely alone.

Are you finding meaningful new ways to connect, create, and share?