So much of life has changed during COVID-19 and it has been going on for so long now that people have adjusted to “the new normal”. So, how exactly has life changed? There have been many big and small changes to all facets of life – keep reading to discover a few of these changes.
The Place of Work
Perhaps the biggest change has been the rise of remote and now hybrid work. Remote work was on the rise prior to COVID-19, but the pandemic forced businesses to experiment with entirely remote teams and this has been a huge success for many. Many companies are now planning to continue with remote work full-time or adopt a hybrid model.
Economic Fallout
In addition to the health crisis, the pandemic has also created a severe economic drop with the UK being particularly hard hit. The stock markets plummeted in March 2020 with central banks slashing interest rates to encourage borrowing and spending. The global economy shrank by as much as 4.4% in 2020 and has been described as the worst decline since the Great Depression of the 1930s. There have been positive signs of recovery, but there is a lot of wall to climb still to get back to pre-pandemic levels. With so many businesses struggling, the government has had to introduce schemes like the Recovery Loan Scheme to help businesses get back on their feet.
Mental Health
COVID-19 has also had a severe impact on people’s mental health. Obviously, there is a lot of anxiety over the virus itself and many people have lost loved ones, plus financial and employment uncertainty has taken its toll on people’s mental health. Not only this, but lockdowns and social restrictions have led many to struggle over the course of the pandemic.
Transport
With heightened anxiety around public transport due to the risk of transmission along with people working from home, it means that people have been using public transport and driving much less. Many people have turned to cycling both as a way to stay in shape and get around and this bike boom could be here to stay, especially if people continue to work remotely.
Online Shopping
Most industries have struggled during COVID-19, but ecommerce has explored with people buying much more online. Shops have reopened, but the convenience and greater choice that people have online means that people are shopping more online and buying items online that they would previously have bought in-store.
These are just a few areas of life that have been affected by COVID-19. While life has returned to some kind of normality, it is clear that life will never be the same again and many of the changes are here to stay.
