My last day at my previous job was three weeks ago. Late that afternoon, a gorgeous flower arrangement arrived at my door.

They were from my now-former boss, who lives in New York—and who I’ve never actually met in person.

They weren’t “please stay” flowers; they were “thank you for everything and I wish you the best of luck” flowers. They were a huge reminder that in our cloud-connected, remote-working, technology-filled virtual world, there’s one thing that is still vital at the core of it all: the need for human connection.

Small fish, huge pond

Six years ago, I did a freelance writing project for Accenture, a Fortune 500 company with 700,000+ people around the globe, which turned into an offer for a full-time contract position.

It was a little intimidating, coming from an organization where I knew literally everyone, and we worked side by side and knew not only how to work together to produce amazing content, but that my favorite graphic designer was a middle-aged grandpa who still loved to skateboard.

I took the jump and went to a fully remote situation, before the pandemic turned the world upside down and working from home became the norm. My new team consisted of people in New York, Chicago, India and England (and beyond!). We’d be collaborating through a computer, not across the aisle or in a boardroom.

I knew I could continue to help strategize and curate great content, but I was a little worried; how would I connect with the people I worked with every day? Since they say we spend more time with our co-workers than our families, it’s pretty important to me to connect with my work people as people, not just as vice presidents and managers and HR assistants and tech support.

What’s your dog’s name?

By taking a few minutes at the beginning of our status calls to talk about life outside the virtual work walls, my manager and I learned so much about each other over the years we worked together.

I know her three kids’ names and was an ear for her when her daughter’s wedding was postponed because of COVID-19. When I had to reschedule a call or jump off early to pick up one of my three kids from school, she’d say, “Of course! Family always comes first.”

And because she respected me as a person and not just an employee and gave me a little flexibility when I needed it, I felt no resentment whatsoever when I needed to work late into the night or rearrange my tasks to meet a deadline. I wanted to not just meet, but exceed expectations.

I felt valued. I felt seen and understood. It was inspiring.

Caring about someone as a human lets them know you care about them as an employee. Building a more human relationship helps cement feelings of mutual respect and loyalty—which will inspire people to want to do their best at work, since you care about them and support them being their best at home too.

Take five

The world is crazy. Our workdays are filled to the brim with too many meetings, too many projects and not enough hours in the day. Balancing the home-work scale is a daily challenge.

Employers, senior managers, team leaders, everyone who works in a job at every level, take note: The most important thing you can do is take the time to connect with your team members on a personal, human level.

Take a few minutes out of your meetings, or even schedule a quick call once in a while just to connect with your people and ask them not just the status of their current projects, but how they’re doing overall.

Learn their children’s (or pets’) names. Learn their hobbies, their passions, what inspires them outside of work. Because what inspires them outside the office can definitely fuel success inside the office.

And knowing what their life is like at home can help you better understand them as a colleague—maybe they’re caring for an aging parent, or they need to spend a little time in the afternoon with a child who’s struggling at school.

Give them the support they need, and they’ll pay you back tenfold—and they’ll be dedicated to helping not just your company, but you succeed.