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Issue link: http://digital.canadawide.com/i/1313659
46 BCBUSINESS NOVEMBER/DECEMBER 2020 Stratford Saves! Offering you better options on optional insurance. STRATFORD UNDERWRITING, INC. 604-282-0670 / 1-833-222-9980 info@stratfordunderwriting.ca To find a Stratford broker near you, go to StratfordSaves.ca like a full lockdown, although the govern- ment is certainly empowered to do that. So when my friends in the States ask me, 'Well, aren't you under lockdown in Brit- ish Columbia?', I say, 'Actually, no. But people are pretty locked down.'" … B U T C A R R Y A B I G S T I C K Not everything has worked. The initial advice surrounding face masks was con- fusing and widely viewed as inconsistent — or, more to the point, wrong-headed. (Henry's reluctance to make masks man- datory in public indoor spaces is con- troversial, considering it's a relatively painless intervention that most British Columbians abide by already.) Testing rates have remained low compared to some other provinces, painting an incom- plete picture of how many British Colum- bians have actually been infected. And, of course, daily new infection totals are rising precipitously; it's a worrisome trend, especially among the 20-29 age demographic, a group whose increasingly cavalier approach to social distancing protocols has set the stage for conflict with those who are playing by the rules. What once worked may not be work- ing as well. That's understandable. In the beginning, says Shachi Kurl, president of the Vancouver-based Angus Reid Institute, the messages we received were uncompli- cated and direct: stay home, don't social- ize. "These are simple messages to absorb. As we moved into Phase 2 and Phase 3, there's much more nebulosity," Kurl says, adding that when people see, say, bars, hotels and banquet halls opening, they assume that things are safe. And the mes- sage? "It just gets fuzzier." In this case, "fuzzy" is dangerous. To counteract scofflaws, on August 21, pro- vincial Minister of Public Safety Mike Farnworth brought the hammer down, announcing fines of up to $2,000 for the organizers or hosts of events that violated social distancing rules. Forced compliance, which both Dix and Henry had avoided implementing, was now officially part of the toolkit. And on September 8, Dr. Henry, fed up with the accelerating number of infections, ordered all nightclubs and banquet halls closed and strictly limited the hours during which bars and restaurants could serve alcohol. It was a bold move, and a devastating blow to the food and beverage sector. But Henry's recalibrated message was also a leadership lesson: in a pandemic, the abil- ity to pivot and adjust to circumstances as they evolve is critical. As is the ability to make tough calls. Other challenges loom. John Horgan's politically savvy yet highly questionable decision to call an election in the middle of a pandemic put at least a temporary kibosh on all that tripartite sweetness and light, a shift that was clearly evident during the televised leaders' debate. The onslaught of seasonal influenza, with its similar set of symptoms to COVID, will have to be man- aged. The situation in recently reopened schools is fluid, and on this file, the gov- ernment remains vulnerable. Then there are the sheer numbers: in mid-November, the province was reporting 600-plus new cases per day, a tally that dwarfed our first- wave experience. But accepting that mistakes will occur is also part of the leadership equation. "It's not a question of always being right, because you can't aways be right," Dix says. " COVID is an unfeeling, brutal adversary…. You know it's going to keep us humble." Perhaps the greatest challenge in the months ahead will be pandemic fatigue. The longer the crisis drags on, the more difficult it will be to get people to keep doing what's needed. At some point—and it may not be too far away—Dr. Bonnie Henry's preternaturally calm voice might begin to sound like fingernails being raked on concrete. In "The Lessons of the Pandemic," George Soper offered another key take- away: that isolating oneself to protect others is not a normal human inclination. Unfortunately, that's what it will take until this, too, passes. Like it did a century ear- lier, our fate rests in our hands. n L E A D E R S H I P L E S S O N Even the best-laid plans can go awry. Accept that mistakes will happen—and that they can be corrected. BCBFiller1/6Vertical_enews.indd