For a few weeks in March, we got a reminder of how bipartisan collaboration can work and how critical it is in a time of crisis. While it wasn’t perfect, the initial stimulus response—from enhanced unemployment to PPP and EIDL loans—was vital to WeSpire and to many, many other people and organizations. Astonishingly, the financial wellbeing of Americans rose in the immediate period following. It is now much clearer who the pandemic continues to inflict economic pain on. Way too many are suffering due the inability of our federal government to function. As Devra First so poignantly wrote this week, “Restaurants aren’t failing. They are being failed.” Business leaders need to speak up, loudly, to ensure the entire economy doesn’t tip over before we can get everyone vaccinated. Democracy is the best climate for business and this year we watched democracy tested as it never has been. I was proud we gave WeSpire the day off to vote. Watching local election officials and workers withstand various assaults on the post-election process has profoundly deepened my appreciation for their work. But the most important experience I had as a leader were the three weeks volunteering for the Biden-Harris digital correspondence team. I spent nights, weekends, and 10+ hours on election day answering emails from all ends of the political spectrum and chatting with undecided voters in swing states through Facebook messenger. I learned a ton about how Americans are feeling. It reinforced how big the bubble I live in is. I recommend that every leader find a way to be more personally involved in the democratic process, locally or nationally.