What did Make The Change team do during circuit breaker?

Phase 2 has just kicked started which means yay to meeting friends, bubble tea, and shopping! As we slowly transition back into our office, we will definitely miss the times we had when working from home. There are many perks like flexibility, more productivity, and unlimited snack time as we work from the comforts of our homes, however there are some factors that cannot be replaced, such as physical interaction and more efficient communication when we are in the office.

As much as we look forward to reopening our office, many of us cannot bear to part from our comfortable homes, so let’s look back at what some of our Make The Change team did during circuit breaker!

1. Our founder, Michelle

Our amazing founder definitely spent most of her time working and clinching deals for Make The Change even during this trying period. Since we are stuck at home most of the time, she was able to have more time for herself and her son. As an ever self improving individual, the circuit breaker has allowed her to read more books and magazines, she even managed to complete more online masterclasses on top of her workload!

With the flexibility of working from home, she was able to manage her sleep schedule better by sleeping and waking up earlier (which is totally unlike me oops!) and pick up a healthier diet! Blessed with more time ever since WFH, she could learn more about her interest in watches and whiskey as well! Our boss definitely made full use of all the time she had during circuit breaker, living a very fulfilled lifestyle!

2. Our co-founder, Pedro

Our active co-founder spent most of his time upgrading Make The Change as well. As learning has moved to the online platform, MTC’s learning programmes have to be redesigned to suit the new norm. He was also able to work on future projects and initiatives as being at home allowed more time for him to research and form new ideas, so do look forward to the new projects that Make The Change will roll out in the near future!

As an avid participant of YOLO2020, an initiative that advocates for mental wellness, Pedro keeps his fitness intact by exercising. And by exercising, we mean climbing floors!! YOLO2020’s initiative was to hike up to Everest Base Camp as a tribute to people with mental health and their caregivers, however their hike has been postponed due to Covid-19. Despite the setback, they are still earnestly preparing themselves for the hike, including Pedro. He has climbed 8,143 floors so far (something I can never achieve), which is equivalent to the hike to Everest Base Camp! We hope that the current situation will come to an end soon so that our fitness guru can complete his hike to Everest Base Camp in September!

3. Our designer, Adeline

Other than working, one of our talented designers Adeline took advantage of circuit breaker to spend even more time with her family. As a family oriented person, she is always putting her family first, and Covid-19 gave her more time with them (awww!!). Not only that, she was able to dedicate more time to working out and keeping her physical health in good shape. She is now able to run faster and longer!! Congratulations!!

With more time on her hands, she managed to try out different activities as well, such as baking, reading, watching tutorials and more. She joked that she cannot really remember all the things she has done during circuit breaker as she has done many things everyday. Just like our boss, she lives a very abundant life! To her, this circuit breaker has made her happier and positive as she was able to remove herself from the negativity in the outside world and focus more on herself and her family. We hope that she can continue feeling this way even as we progress into the post circuit breaker life.

4. Our community development specialist, Xue Min

Our bubbly youngster was given the opportunity to explore new initiatives for work. Circuit breaker has normalised online activities and events and she managed to try her hands at hosting live streamed talks called Conversation of Change - a talk hosted by a youth to inspire changemakers and prompt them to make a change!

This circuit breaker also allowed her to explore different hobbies and interests, and she picked up a few including baking, embroidery, reading, and listening to podcasts! As a lively individual, she definitely misses interacting with her colleagues and going to schools to conduct learning programmes such as DAFA (Digital Arts For All). We hope that the Covid-19 world will come to an end soon so that we can interact with everyone again!

While we are all excited to be out hanging out with our friends and grabbing our favourite food, it is important to still practice safe distancing and good personal hygiene. Businesses that are reopening should also observe safety measures and strictly adhere to rules and regulations imposed by the government. All of us should play a part to keep the numbers of infected people low so that we can slowly return to pre Covid-19 lifestyle.