The Covid-19 pandemic has had adverse impacts on individuals and affected nearly all aspects of life. From social and economic disruptions to food insecurity, loss of livelihoods, loss of loved ones, and devastating effects on education, Covid-19 has affected the general well-being of individuals. From a personal point of view, the pandemic fundamentally changed my ways of doing things and shaped my behavior in several ways. For example, it completely changed my perspective towards spending, shopping, and saving. More than ever before, I pay special attention to creating multiple streams of income, prioritizing my health and that of my family. Today, I am more conscious about making sustainable choices than short-term decisions. This paper highlights and discusses at length the specific ways through which the pandemic affected my life.
The outbreak of Covid-19 has affected people’s lives in unprecedented ways. The pandemic has had devastating social and economic disruptions that threatened our lives. Whether it is restrictions on movements, school closures, ban on social gatherings, or limitations on certain economic activities, the pandemic has created many negative effects. The overall effects of these social and economic disruptions are loss of income, food insecurity, loss of lives, and increased poverty levels (Horton, 2021). The security measures imposed and social distance requirements also affected relationships and social interactions among people. It is almost impossible to find someone whose life was not affected in one way or another due to the Covid-19 pandemic. Thus, from a personal point of view, the pandemic altered almost all aspects of my life, including loss of income, loss of loved ones, changes in behavior patterns, loss of education, restricted movement, and high cost of living. Overall, the pandemic dramatically changed my way of living, working, and learning in unprecedented ways.
One of the greatest impacts of coronavirus is the financial impact that weighed heavily on me. The economic disruptions forced many employers, whether small, medium size, or large to cut salaries of employees temporarily due to loss of revenues during the pandemic. A considerable number of companies turned to pay cuts rather than laying off workers to reduce their labor expenses, and my employer was no exception (Buheji & Ahmed, 2020). My company implemented a 40% pay cut for all employees in March 2020, hoping to preserve the existing workforce for a faster recovery. Although the approach made economic sense, particularly during those uncertain times, it affected my lifestyle and general spending habits. During the 1 year of a pay cut, I had trouble paying my bills, including servicing a bank loan that I had taken a couple of years ago. The loss of income meant that I had to dip into personal savings at least to make ends meet. At some point, I had to borrow money from family members and friends to cover some of the expenses. The financial struggles during the period were a result of job disruption. In addition, the loss of income curtailed my ability to save money due to the economic upheaval.
Besides the financial impacts, pay cuts have effects on morale and overall productivity. Taking away a portion of employees’ income suddenly lowers their morale, especially if they are expected to do the same duties for less compensation (Cortes & Forsythe, 2020). During the period of the pay cut, there was a general feeling of low morale in the workplace. Decreased morale comes with lower productivity. Employees did not feel motivated to work hard for less pay, so the reduced productivity further affected the normal operations of the business. The overall effect of lower morale and decreased productivity was a decline in the quality of work due to the lost benefits and incentives. Pay cuts also come with reduced loyalty as employees are generally uncertain about what may come next. The overall effect is that employees start listening to offers from other potential employers due to the reduced loyalty.
Coping with the loss of a loved one is often difficult, but it was even harder during the Covid-19 period because the losses were sudden and families were unable to mourn properly due to the restrictions meant to stop further spreading of coronavirus. On several occasions, I could not memorialize and grieve the loss of a loved one in ways that are culturally and religiously normal (MacKenzie, 2020). Border restrictions, both at the national and international level meant that I have had to forego attending funerals of a couple of my loved ones. In addition, visiting loved ones in hospital, particularly those infected with coronavirus was almost impossible. Not being abl
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