Each year when we reach out to contributors to assemble this collection of Power of Ideas essays, I am taken by the fact that no matter how disparate the industries or geographies are from which they are written, common themes always emerge. Since the authors don’t know what others are writing, the through-line provides keen insight into the core challenges people are facing, and some good thinking on potential remedies.

Having been absent from so many for so long, the desire for connection is palpable in this grouping—and not just going back to the way things were before, but bringing our changed selves back to a very different world of work and community. There’s a hopefulness that this new world will be better, tempered by a wariness that these recently learned lessons might evaporate.

Leadership is a constant test, and the test questions keep changing.

Leadership is a constant test, and the test questions keep changing. That doesn’t make the people you’re leading less inclined to look to you for answers, but it’s honest to say you don’t have them all. One of the teaching moments of the constant ebbs and flows through COVID has been a forced acceptance that we don’t control nearly as much as we think we do. That we need others to tackle great challenges. That it’s okay to not be okay 100 percent of the time.

As we gather together in person again, let’s add some intentionality to reconnecting. Are we leveling the playing field and fostering inclusive connection? What did you miss most, and how will you steward that going forward?

Give yourself some time to spend with the following pieces and extract some lessons to take back with you.