Event Detail

How did you respond to the March 11 earthquake and tsunami? Did you stay? Did you leave? As we return to work in the aftermath of this crisis, unspoken conflicting feelings between those who left and those who stayed may lurk beneath the surface, potentially raising issues of loyalty to company vs. loyalty to family vs. loyalty to self. The term "Fly-jin" has been coined to denote both foreigners and Japanese who left Japan in the aftermath of the earthquake and tsunami - the alternative term "Stay-in" connotes those who stayed. Decisions in crisis and trauma cannot be judged under the same assumptions that hold in normal times. In crisis, people in trauma or shock are operating under different neurological conditions. You or your co-workers may have been in shock without even realizing it. Often more primal survival instincts overtake our normal day-to-day rational thinking. Yet, when we return to work, our behavior in trauma is often judged under the same assumptions as normal. On one side, there may be feelings of resentment, anger, or numbness by those who stayed - or there may be other feelings or no acknowledgement of feelings at all. On the other side, there may (or may not) be feelings of guilt, shame and relief by those who left. Where conflictual feelings exist, if these issues are not brought out into the open, they can fester into long-term resentment and ill will in the work place. This interactive discussion and workshop offers an opportunity to explore the various perspectives represented by those who left, those who stayed, headquarters in the U.S., Europe, etc. that evacuated senior managers to avoid liability issues, and other perspectives not immediately visible around this issue. Please join us and add your perspective! You may come away with new insights and understanding. BYOBB: Bring your own Bento and Beverage! For those interested in ways to cope with trauma around the earthquake, but unable to attend on May 5, there will be a full-day workshop on Coping with Trauma on Friday, May 6 in Omotesando. For more information, please contact Cathy Bernatt at: < This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it >.