The last few months have been anything but “normal” for most of us. Parts of life during COVID-19 have been hard. Very hard. And parts have been really wonderful. I’m fairly certain that my husband and I have had the best and hardest moments of our marriage during this time. The comical tweet to the right sums up some of those hard moments. Perhaps you can relate?!

On the flip side, here are some of the really wonderful things I’ve experienced:

• Slow mornings, versus rushing my children off to daycare.

• Countless family walks—pre-lunch, post-lunch, pre-dinner, post-dinner…you get the point.

• Seeing clients let their guards down a bit more, thanks to the comfort and vulnerability of home offices.

• Teaching my youngest daughter how to read—I’ve never been so excited to hear that “Sam hops” and “Dot can run!”

• Creating our neighborhood’s longest chalk hopscotch with my 8-year-old, then watching numerous families enjoy it on their walks.

• Watching reruns of The Office with my husband and laughing just as hard as we did the first time we saw them many years ago.

Rather than return to our old normal, I hope to carry these good things forward with us as we establish a new normal. I urge you to do the same—at home and at work.

Over the past few months, you’ve experienced your colleagues in new ways. You’ve seen their kitchens and living rooms. You’ve seen their bad DIY haircuts. You’ve seen them with no make-up or new facial hair. You’ve seen their dogs, cats, and children. You’ve seen them in the same outfit two days in a row. Or maybe, more seriously, you’ve seen them cry, or laugh in new ways. You’ve learned things about their personal interests that you never would have imagined. Perhaps you’ve recognized new talents in them. Don’t try to unsee these things and go back to the old ways. Instead, embrace them—leverage the goodness of knowing each other at new depths as you move forward together.

Furthermore, I hope (and trust) that you’ve also experimented with new approaches to leading your people during this time:

• You’ve been more flexible with work schedules and work locations.

• You’ve cared about staff members as whole people, not just employees.

• You’ve checked-in more frequently—not to micromanage, but to build connection.

• You’ve intentionally redesigned meeting rhythms to maximize effectiveness and keep your team aligned.

• You’ve allowed people to better integrate their work and home lives, and hopefully given yourself permission to do the same.

• You’ve trusted your team from a distance.

• You’ve bravely communicated with more openness and transparency.

• You’ve been more empathetic and understanding.

Please, take these good—truly wonderful—things and carry them forward as you embrace a new way of leading and working. What does that look like for you? Maybe it’s rewriting your workplace policy on flextime and telecommuting; asking more intentional questions during one-on-ones; sharing personal stories at work, or sharing work stories at home; starting your workday one hour later or earlier; or exercising during lunch breaks. Whatever it is, let it be different somehow.

Let’s not waste what we’ve learned during this time. We don’t need to “go back to normal”—work doesn’t have to be the way it’s always been. In fact, I hope it isn’t.

How do you plan to live, work, or lead differently, influenced by what you’ve experienced during this season? Please share in the comments below.