MIT member Eugenia Primis writes about her experience living in NYC during the COVID-19 pandemic and the lessons she learned.
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I spent February 2020 in Savannah, GA on vacation with my mom. We had an amazing time strolling down the tree lined streets, visiting museums and enjoying the diverse culinary culture of the town. Covid was just a mention, nothing to be too concerned about, but as the virus slowly creeped toward our shores it was a matter of weeks before we felt the sudden impact of COVID-19. Working as a Senior Event Manager for the largest convention hotel in New York City, I didn’t realize at the time how I would be affected, but soon, as flights from Asia and Europe (two top markets in New York) were stopped, groups coming to my hotel started cancelling at an alarming rate. By March 13th Governor Cuomo had banned gatherings of 500 or more. Every event venue including Broadway closed followed by all bars and restaurants. Corporate America left abruptly in a mass exodus, leaving The Big Apple an empty shell of the city it once was. By April, the it was dead. The lights of Time Square, one of the most instagrammed places in the world, flashed in silence as if to remind us that only a couple weeks earlier, it was a bustling hub for tourism and nightlife. The world locked down by the end of March and New York went into a slumber never before seen in the history of the city.
The year 2020 will always be remembered as a hard year for so many. Sudden loss of life, jobs, and freedoms took a toll on every country around the world, but in New York, we were adjusting to the fact that our city, and the hospitality industry especially, would be changed forever. I was furloughed from my job with the New York Hilton Midtown on March 20th, and by the July 4th weekend I was officially laid off. Initially I took the news with understanding and patience. Like so many others in my industry, I dove into learning new skills to try and “reinvent” myself, but as the year went on and jobs became harder and harder to come by, I knew that this was going to be a year that would challenge me in ways I’ve never known before. Throughout all of the tough times though, there were many silver linings. I learned so much about myself and the resilience I possess, and I was reminded once again that with perseverance, I will always be ok. These are the lessons I learned, and the ones I carry with me as I begin to rebuild my life after what I call “The Great Reset”.
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1. New Yorkers are amazing people
New Yorkers have a reputation for being rude and impatient. In the nearly 17 years that I lived in New York City I learned that this is a misconception. In fact, New Yorkers are some of the most compassionate people I have ever met. What we are is busy. Time is money, and every wasted minute is a wasted opportunity. During the pandemic, I saw the kindhearted side to New York. The beginning of the pandemic was scary. Living in such a densely populated place it was only natural to assume that the virus might sweep through the city. I spent my days inside my house thankful to have a washing machine and outdoor space, both rare in New York. Ambulance sirens blared every day. Yes, many people left the city, but those that stayed stuck together. Each night at 7:00pm everyone stepped outside and clapped for the exhausted healthcare workers. I realized that like so many times before, New Yorkers were there to support each other in a way I’m not sure other cities can. A sense of community during trying times. New Yorkers are in the trenches together. As 2020 went on, New York was slowly dying. Marked with riots and looting, mass casualty and death, closed restaurants, vacant storefronts and a skyline full of empty buildings, I began to wonder if the city was ever going to be the same. Now 15 months later it is coming back to life, and the resilience of the city and its people is more apparent than ever before.
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2. Everything passes with time and perseverance
What is time? This year it was even more apparent that time is intangible. Every one of us lost ourselves in the stream of days and weeks passing ever so slowly. The whole year was a blur with only the seasons as steadfast reminders of where we were. I have had tremendous emotion and frustration over the loss of my industry and my city. This year was the 2nd hardest year of my life, second only to the year I lost my father. I knew I would survive the job loss. These things happen, but the hardest part was the months and months of searching for work, trying to “reinvent” myself. After the constant stream of rejection letters, my confidence and self-worth took a plunge. There were so many lows but I learned that everything gets better with time, even the heartbreak of loss, whether that is for a loss of loved ones, a job, freedom or a normal sense of life. Time marches on, and eventually things start to look positive again.
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3. You may have to lose a lot to start over and that’s OK
The pandemic hit NYC hard. Harder than any other state in the US seems to realize. So much of New York is the tourism industry. Restaurants, bars, Broadway shows, night clubs, even Wall Street…all of that closed and much of it is still quiet after 16 months. Corporate America moved out of NYC and what was left was a steep slope back to recovery. For me it was a year of constant job searching with very few results. It was a year of trying to catch up with the times and make myself “relevant” considering the world had changed so drastically overnight and the only 2 industries I have ever worked in (theater and hotels) were closed until further notice. After a long year of internal struggles I decided to give myself a break from New York. The city that I loved for 17 years had very little to offer me and I knew for myself, I needed to start over. It has cost me time, money, energy and emotion but what really sunk in this year was the realization that we have one life, and throughout that life, we may need to lose a lot to start over. I am starting over again after building my life and career in New York for nearly two decades. It was scary at first, and I know it is not going to be easy, but the important thing to remember is that it is all going to be OK. I call the year of Covid the “Great Reset” because for so many of us in the hospitality industry, it has been. We have moved to different places, countries and industries, but in the end, I know it will only make us stronger. My new life will take time, but eventually the lessons I learned and hardships I have gone through will make me even more resilient.