This is our moment to challenge the old and craft the new
Whatever your role or industry, things at work have changed.
Six-months into #PandemicLife, some of us are operating 100% virtually while others on the frontlines are live and in person. But whether you're remote, face-to-face, or living la- vida hybrid, it's unlikely things feel or taste much like the start of 2020.
When the shutdown began, the most common - and rightful - leadership response I saw was an urgent effort to keep the train on the tracks. The goal was ensuring business continuity by lifting and shifting our in-person work (our meetings, our projects, etc.) into Zoom or the virtual platform of choice.
Now, six months later, it's looking like it may still be some time before - if ever - we revert back to our 2019 ways of working.
That said, my question to you is this: Are you still keeping the train on the tracks, or are you imagining new modes of transport?
I'm not suggesting a business model or strategy reinvention. That's your "what." I'm talking about giving ourselves and our teams the space and permission to truly rethink the "how;" to question the meetings, the norms, the practices we carry, and to wonder which are serving us, which may need to be retired, and where reinvention is our opportunity.
For me, my "what" remains the same. I continue to partner with leaders and their teams to amplify what they're able to deliver. But the "how" of my work has shifted quite a bit.
Until 2019, my work consisted largely of in-person workshop facilitation and speaking. I thrived on the energy of being in the room (as many of us did!) with others, and I loved the way I worked.
But I've learned in recent months that engagement via Zoom or Meets is a different beast. And as a result, I've made big changes to my "how." I'm doing mostly smaller group coaching work because that's the best way I've found to achieve the same impact or outcome.
Smaller groups allow for more dialog and the development of true communities of practice. The modulated delivery mechanism (i.e., over 4 weeks versus 4 hours) allows for more application to real-life, problem-solving, and accountability.
The shift in how is feeling like a win for me and my clients.
So how are you supporting your team in reinventing ways of delivering your brand of excellence? What impact or outcome must you deliver, and is there a more effective means of achieving it?
If you've made big strides, I would love to hear your success stories!
And if you've got some miles to travel down that path, here are a few questions that might help get you started. Ask yourself and your team:
- How well are the old ways serving us in our current mode of operating?
- What might be hindering us, or keeping us flat?
- What elements (i.e., meetings, dashboards, norms) are we keeping alive only for the sake of momentum?
- What are we ready to let go of?
- What problems could we be solving with new approaches to working?
- What practices might we experiment with instead?
Whatever opportunities await, I wish you well. And please don't hesitate to celebrate your wins with me any time!