If you were to summarize life during the pandemic in one word, it probably wouldn't be a polite one. Consider this answer though: adaptation.

We've adapted to distributed work, the stacking of our home and work lives, and adjusting our expectations for ... basically everything. Adaptation allows us to change and helps us to identify and develop the tools we need to change. But what's equally notable are the things we forget, leave behind, or simply haven't figured out a way to make COVID-friendly. Many of our workplaces have moved online, but an underrated-yet-key part of in-person work hasn't followed.=

Background office chatter and water cooler conversations blend together over time to create an effect called Osmotic Communication, where we learn things without even realizing we did it, especially when it comes to tiny details and milestones in the lives of our colleagues. It's a strangely fundamental part of keeping up to date with the rest of your team, and we have yet to figure out how to adapt it to our remote work lifestyles.