There was a time not long ago when many of us tuned out talk about disruption because it didn’t seem relevant to our daily reality. But suddenly millions of us are being compelled to embrace digital transformation if we want to keep our jobs and save our businesses as the coronavirus turns our world upside down.

The truth is, our current situation isn’t looking so bright. Although some businesses are still coping, many are suffering, many lives are at risk and the economy is plummeting. These are dark times for everyone in the world.

But the truth is, we’re humans. Throughout thousands of years of human history, our predecessors managed to evolve and adapt to change. At this time, it is critical for us to achieve our potential and adapt to a big change once again.

Remote work and social distancing have become the order of the day as the best strategy for slowing the spread of Covid-19. At the same time, it also allows us to take a step back from our usually busy daily lives. The only thing business leaders may worry about when it comes to remote work is the productivity of their staff, as they can no longer supervise them directly.

But every change brings a degree of confusion, uncertainty and even chaos at first. Although humans are great at adapting to change, the initial contact with any kind of uncertainty can cause confusion and fear.

Here’s where learning comes in. A big part of learning in our daily lives is the need for constant practice. But because we can no longer go out for classes, workshops or social events to learn, we must also learn to dog so remotely.

Many renowned universities and educational institutions have already opened virtual classrooms to continue offering instruction and maintain lecturer and student interactions. My organisation and many others have also launched virtual classroom sessions. Although rolling this out was a huge challenge – and will continue to be – it is needed in the current situation.

The great thing about digital learning and virtual classrooms is that they allows learners to practise being “digital”. Many of us, especially the older generations, are not used to working without physical interaction with our team. But learning in virtual classrooms doesn’t take away interactivity. In fact, it can help us get used to using digital means to get our regular work done.

There are already many great tips online about how to stay productive when working remotely. But what I’m going to share with you is the learning aspect as it shouldn’t be overlooked.

How do we integrate digital learning into current remote work and social distancing settings? Here are some tips to begin learning digitally in order to maintain productivity through remote work.

First, adopt the right mindset for learning. When you begin with the right mindset, positive behaviour follows naturally. On the other hand, uncontrolled negativity, especially now, can fester and add to the problems you face.

A great starting point is the Growth Mindset concept (see video below) developed by Carol Dweck, a professor of psychology at Stanford University and author of the pioneering book Mindset. A growth mindset tells us that through adversity, we can still continue to learn and grow. At times like this, a growth mindset can help us understand and overcome challenges together.

Second, strengthen trust between yourself and your people. Remote work is daunting for both management and the members of their team, each of whom have different concern points. The concerns connect to one thing and that is trust between management and their people.

To build trust, establish guidelines that can help you, the management, and your people to learn and work from home. This way, expectations, results and working times are clarified.

Third, research and identify different platforms that can work for your virtual learning. Each platform has a different style and features, so it is a matter of figuring out which ones answer your learning needs and those of the organisation.

Finally, make virtual learning a habit. We learn better when we’re able to practise it often. When we practise regularly, it becomes a part of our habits and natural behaviour. We not only learn new knowledge, we also develop new skills that can help us to make more of a contribution.

Change on the massive scale we are seeing now does not necessarily mean we have to stop in our tracks. Although there is a lot of uncertainty on the path ahead, we have no choice but to continue moving forward. It is time for us to find new ways to learn and work to keep our lives and businesses moving forward.

Arinya Talerngsri is Chief Capability Officer and Managing Director at SEAC - Southeast Asia’s Lifelong Learning Center. She can be reached by email at arinya_t@seasiacenter.com or https://www.linkedin.com/in/arinya-talerngsri-53b81aa. Explore and experience our lifelong learning ecosystem today at https://www.yournextu.com