Permanent shift: A man carries an oxygen tank to be filled in Peru. The pandemic has caused a lot of distress, forcing people to re-evaluate their goals. — AP
A PANDEMIC that has killed close to three million people worldwide and shut down entire economies was always going to force a fundamental re-evaluation of life goals and priorities. The death of the office and the hollowing out of city centres are just two of the possible after-effects that have loomed into view. More than one year in, the shock waves are reaching an even more basic level.
The 13 junior analysts at Goldman Sachs Group Inc who protested last month over long working hours, unreasonable demands and deteriorating mental and physical health gave voice to an equation that is part of almost everyone’s internal calculus: How much are we prepared to put up with now for what we want later? The evidence suggests that the pandemic has shifted the balance decisively toward “not as much as before”.
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