Something Like Covid-Rage? How Covid could change our homes forever

Living in a community village setup is challenging at the best of times – but in the confines and stresses of a pandemic, where everyone wants space, but there are even less than usual to go around – things can get crazy!

With WhatsApp groups, everyone can be in contact with everyone, and it can be very useful, with lots of opportunities to get to know and help each other. It can also become a battleground of accusations and abuse. The trustees can become lightning conductors and scapegoats. They have the responsibility to enforce legislation and safety plans, and they must in the midst of economic disaster, keep an eye on the financial health of the scheme and implement actions to the best of their limited information! They have to keep the scheme healthy in more ways than just protect from viruses!

We live in a society where keyboard warriors can use their sometimes unlimited supply of time, or their superior knowledge or opinions, in a less than socially acceptable or cordial manner. They have opinions on everything and would like to broadcast it on a platform where they can impress and influence the rest of the less gifted beings around them. It usually also becomes the platform where they can attack and abuse others. Their communication can be course, insolent, and rude. It can sometimes destroy the valuable connection trustees seeks to establish, to such an extent that trustees have to change the WhatsApp group to a broadcast group so that members cannot comment. This is a big social loss that can often be laid at the feet of only two or three culprits. To have successful WhatApp groups, trustees will need to have rules and enforce discipline.

Behind the obvious harm, this causes, there is a good thing that emerges from this. These communications, whether Whatsapp groups, email or whatever other methods, is a great opportunity to get to know the other owners/residents that you may meet in real life – at an Annual General meeting or in another situation where this little window into who they really are, can be very valuable. It gives the mild-mannered, silent majority of owners, a chance to get to know the people they share the management, of possibly their most important asset with.

It is especially of value when having to appoint trustees at the next Annual General Meeting! Usually, people do not know each other well enough to make an informed decision when appointing community scheme executives. This can lead to getting the hot-headed, mouthy people into the highly important and responsible positions of being trustees or directors. In these positions, you need people that can make evenhanded, coolheaded, and rational decisions. If you can only base your opinion on the limited interaction at an AGM, it is easy to make disastrous appointments!

I would like to address something that sometimes happens at meetings where this kind of people cause a lot of tension and chaos. Sometimes the other owners feel that by appointing these loudmouths as trustees, it will teach them a lesson or have them put their money where their mouth is. – It is never a good idea! Someone who cannot see the bigger picture and act in the best interest of all (even those that do not even know or appreciate it!), should not be in a position of power. Although meetings must be ordered and well run, it is sometimes a good idea to give someone like this, a little bit of rope, so that the other owners can see what is going on.

Even though someone may have been nominated as a trustee in writing, it is possible to oppose a nomination and share concerns with the meeting on why you do not think that a specific person is a suitable candidate. The meeting can then decide on the matter by first voting on this issue, before further voting on the appointment of trustees.

It is not easy to deal with controlling, manipulative, or domineering people. It is unfortunate, but they are everywhere in society and will try to steer according to their will and not their mind. You can get very “góód leaders”, which may be strong leaders, but not good. Their leadership qualities can send those they lead over a cliff and do a lot of damage to the establishment they must take responsibility for. If someone has this profile, they will NOT be able to be objective, impartial, or fair. Qualities that you need to have, to make good decisions.

They are dangerous in all circumstances, whether in government or in other leadership positions and it is dangerous for the silent majority to take the way of least resistance, and allow them to take charge over matters that can and will, impact your life or possessions.

The difficulty of the lockdown is definitely the ideal chance, where frustrations, pressure, and annoyances bring out the anger and underlying antagonism, which may otherwise not be so noticeable.

While having an understanding of the difficulty of these times, and while we need to make allowance for out of character behaviour, it is still valuable to see the characteristics that pressure will bring to the forefront. If someone is unreasonable, selfish,  hostile, and vindictive – take note and take action when necessary and important! – The best indication of future behaviour is past behaviour!