Things change, disruption happens, as they should. With change comes the need for adaptation, for fresh thinking and sometimes a total reboot.
But how many times have you been told: “No, it won’t work”?
In 2020, we busted old habits, old processes and old thinking that kept us stuck in the past.
We didn’t think we could be as productive working from home. Now we know better.
We didn’t think customers would buy online. Now we know better.
We didn’t think we could implement the “digital transformation plan” in 4 weeks. Now we know better.
Chasing the past or leading into the future?
Some of us are closing the quarter right now, and we already know there will be hell to pay. We are a performance-driven company. In other words, if anyone doesn’t meet their targets two quarters in a row, they’re out. And I mean anyone. No one is spared. As a manager, it’s time for housekeeping. The industry goes through a round of musical chairs. That’s reality. We all know the game. We’ve been playing by its rules for a very long time.
Claim your authority as a leader
You are a powerful leader who demands respect and authority. You are the ‘rock’ - people rely on you for stability and security. You have a clear vision of the emerging future. There is a bigger game to play, but you can’t do it by yourself. It requires a different playbook. The internal rules and regulations need updating. Childish games no longer interest you.
During change, the most important job of a leader is to provide meaning - capture what is really happening and provide ways for people to understand.
When the environment is confusing and ambiguous, people look to you for structure and clarity. So how do you elevate the game while everyone is working remotely? How do you monitor performance without micro-managing?
You can create law and order by providing principles or guidelines to help people make sense of the changing situation. You can create calm out of chaos by showing people how to break down the problem into its parts and then map out the actions they need to take to resolve it. This helps them to be systematic, strategic and highly organised in their approach, and more likely to stick to the plan until the end and deliver the results that you want.
Are you willing to change?
Change is in the air. The opportunity is there, but it requires your active participation, your willingness to claim your authority as a leader. The opportunity does not materialise on its own. People will resist it. They will bitch. They will moan. By taking a stand, you may even risk getting fired. “It’s going to get worse before it gets better. Q4 is water under the bridge. But there’s pent-up demand, and if we are strategic and lay the groundwork now, we can capture the lion’s share of the upswing in 2021."
Because I can stay numb to change, and 2020 will feel like a big f*ck up, full of drama, chaos and bad ju-ju, hoping for things to get back to “normal" in 2021.
To embrace change or be numb to it - it’s a personal choice. I’m not telling you what you “should” do. This is not about what's right or what’s wrong. This is not some model answer promising guaranteed results. What I’m sharing here is simply what you can do. My job is to get you to your next level of performance. And it may sound like: “It’s all up to you”. But this is not meant to blame or make anyone feel bad. I like to see it as an act of self-compassion. Because I can stay numb to change, and 2020 will feel like a big f*ck up, full of drama, chaos and bad ju-ju, hoping for things to get back to “normal" in 2021. Or I can embrace change and experience 2020 with a sense of excitement and trepidation, “Wow, all this is happening for me….” Like waking up on Christmas morning, wondering what unexpected surprises await you under the tree. This is something we can do. We can choose how we view the world, even if our external actions remain the same. And that can make all the difference in the world.
This week’s challenge: Providing structure & clarity
In last week’s challenge, you started connecting with your purpose and how 2020 is happening FOR you.
This week, we’re going to focus on actions you can take to provide the structure and clarity for you, your team or your organisation. These actions must be both practical and powerful. By practical, I mean small things that you can do immediately. Don’t try and boil the ocean. Stretch yourself to identify those micro-changes that are too small to fail, but when done consistently, leads to something bigger. Now that’s powerful.
Here are some prompts:
CONTINUE:
What has been working, and you want to do more of?
What structures/processes/guidelines can you put in place?
START:
What are you not doing that you must start doing now?
STOP:
What is no longer working for you, and you need to stop doing now?
What do you need to stop doing? (So that you’ll stop running away from what you really need to do. You know what I’m referring to 😉)
Will Leadership Branding work for you?
Throughout this year, you have gained valuable knowledge and expertise. You may be a boss, investor, coach or a professional who wants to take what you have learned and pass it on to others so that they may benefit from it. Or you want to take your newfound knowledge and build the company’s future on it.
With Leadership Branding, we’ll help you articulate the narrative of the emerging future, to communicate with your team, or explain the changes you are making, or to ask for resources. We’ll help you formulate principles and guidelines so that you can empower your team to break down problems and map out solutions on their own, as if you were doing it with them.
We’ll love to support you on that journey. You can read more about Leadership Branding here.
If you like reading more about leadership and change, join our newsletter, stay inspired here.
PERSONNA is a leadership development company focused on the people side of transformation. We hold a simple belief that everyone is an extraordinary force for positive change, and our solutions should be as unique and agile as you and your business challenges.
We’re here to help people become better leaders, build highly-effective teams, and create a culture of trust & collaboration in their organisations. We provide leadership branding, leadership coaching and group experiences. If you are curious to learn more drop us an email to hello@personna.me.
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