For Angela Kinsey, the end of 2020, much like the rest of the year, was a rough ride.
That’s because her entire family — her 12-year-old daughter, her stepsons who are ages 10 and 12, her husband and even her 82-year-old mother who lives in Texas — got Covid-19.
Now that they’ve all recovered, Kinsey took some time to tell Know Your Value how her family made it through the tumultuous year, how Covid-19 brought her closer to her mom and how she’s prioritized her own worth throughout her career.
Kinsey’s stepsons got the virus first, but Kinsey, her daughter and her husband still tested negative. Then her husband and daughter got it, then five days later she finally tested positive. While their symptoms were all fairly light, Kinsey said her biggest concern quickly became her mother — who tested positive about five days before Kinsey herself did.
“It was also right over Christmas, but I will tell you the hardest part was not that, it was here I am in California dealing with COVID and then my mother, who is 82 and in Texas, got COVID and she ended up having to go to the hospital,” said Kinsey. “That was so scary, and you have no access — thank goodness we got her an iPhone a few years ago, and my sisters and I were just checking in constantly, but no one had eyes on her. No one could go in. And we tried to get her to FaceTime — she is not a fan of FaceTime — but I was just on my knees in prayer and I’m so thankful she is home and she’s doing so much better and I’m just so thankful.”
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While it was a horrible, scary time, Kinsey said the experience actually strengthened her relationship with her mother. “Your mom is someone who’s always journeyed something way before you, you know? But we had this thing at the same time,” said Kinsey.
Each day, Kinsey (who is a spokesperson for Advil Dual Action) and her mother would talk on the phone about their symptoms. The emotional support became integral for both of them.
“You know, it was something that my mom and I have talked quite a bit about — that the timing made no sense but that we could be there for each other together,” said Kinsey. “I could say, ‘Mom, I’m feeling this today,’ and she could say, ‘Yeah, I had that too.’ We had this dialogue and we could be there for each other in a way that … I don’t know if we’ve ever really had that.”
This closeness with family isn’t new to Kinsey. In fact, it’s the main reason why she and Jenna Fischer, Kinsey’s co-star in “The Office,” started a podcast together called “Office Ladies.”
In the podcast, they’re re-watching the entire show and recapping it with memories and even bringing in other guest stars, writers and crew members. While all of this may seem like a fun (and brilliant!) idea, Kinsey said it was actually a move that she made in order to prioritize her time and put her own personal value first in her career.
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“One of the reasons why I started this podcast with Jenna is that we both wanted to be home more,” explained Kinsey. “We wanted to be more in charge of our schedule and our time. We never wanted to miss another soccer game because of our schedule or because of work or whatever it is our kids are invested in. That was a real shift for me a year ago before COVID, but certainly this pandemic has just reinforced all of that.”
Kinsey and Fischer are real life best friends, and to say that they’ve enjoyed making the podcast together is an absolute understatement.
“We are best friends and no one builds you up like your best friend, so imagine having that as your co-boss: that person that makes you better, that raises the level of your game,” said Kinsey. “And we both had the same goals, which were family first, and also Jenna really wanted a job where she could wear sweatpants, so that works out as well.”
Together, the two of them have coined a phrase that they use as they move throughout their careers and determine what projects they want to take on. “We say to each other that we wanted to be the architects of our time,” explains Kinsey. For Fischer and Kinsey, this means putting their families first.
Of course, it’s hard to talk to Kinsey without asking at least one little question about her time on “The Office.” First, she explains the moment she knew the show was going to be big.
“I knew ‘The Office’ was special right away — I remember ‘Diversity Day,’ where we all had those notecards on our foreheads,” explains Kinsey, referencing episode two of the first season. “I was just like, man this is a funny, funny group of people. And it felt like I got to go to the best comedy school ever every day and just watch Steve Carrell do his thing.”
Her biggest takeaway, though, is a lesson that everyone could apply in their lives.
"If there’s something I really learned from that time in my life, it was just listening: learning to listen,” said Kinsey. “To be in a scene with those people that are so, so talented, the better listener I was, the better performer I was going to be. … If you can just learn to be in the moment and be present, it’s going to make you a better performer, a better mom, a better wife, a better friend. I know that’s sort of a weird takeaway, but those years on ‘The Office,’ there was so much good stuff to pay attention to. I thought all of that made us better actors because that show taught you to listen.”