Moments — "Preparedness in life or the lack there of..."

It’s not that I ever really run out of ideas for blog topics but sometimes what I have in the proverbial “hopper” seem a little stale so every so often I fish for ideas, and the waters are always plentiful.

And on my hook this time… “Preparedness in life or the lack there of…”

Something born out of Covid 19 I suspect, and most likely a reflection of dealing with what we like to affectionately call the new normal, or in other words trying to understand a deadly new virus while dealing with interrupted employment, children at home, operating in isolation, having your support groups operate from a distance, and only just now, not having to worry about a reliable toilet paper supply chain.

These seven words make for a huge topic, and where to start? Are we talking about building good foundations, or managing through crisis, or dealing with change and adaption, or dealing with emotion, or simply all of it? In situations like this, when the topic is huge, I always go to my “sayings” file and see what I’ve squirrelled away for motivation.

And the waters are always plentiful when it comes to pithy sayings.

Like this one for example:

Next time you’re stressed, take a step back, inhale and laugh. Remember who you are and why you are here. You’re never given anything in this would that you can’t handle. Be strong, be flexible. love yourself and love others. Always remember — Just Keep Moving Forward. (Unknown)

And this one

Your journey has molded you for your greater good, and it was exactly what it needed to be. Don’t think that you have lost time. It took each and every situation you have encountered to bring you to the now. And now is right on time. (Asha Tyson)

I suppose Life is an odyssey we are never totally prepared for and we need to confront situations that come our way with a knowing and a confidence that we can work through whatever is in front of us. Strength, flexibility, determination and kindness are our guides, and we are greater for it.

There you have it.

Pithy quotes are the answer to almost everything.

iamgpe

PS — Someone really did send me this blog suggestion, and I am thankful for it because I really needed some pithy quotes right about now.

The importance of character when it's important...

I am not trying to be flippant when I say we are all in the middle of a very large Virology 101 classroom — as COVID 19 infiltrates the populations of the world we are all better understanding virus morphology, modes of transmissions, R naught ratings, progression of a disease, et cetera, et cetera. A new virus has entered the population and based on current data, if not put in check, may kill up to 2 % of the population before a vaccine and therapeutics are available. By any definition we are dealing with a crisis and now faced with what is affectionately called “flattening the curve” — implementing activities to slow the transmission rate of the virus, and by doing so, protect our institutions from becoming overwhelmed by those who become very sick. This is a situation where no one person can sit on the sidelines and everyone needs to take this seriously. Success will be the result of an effort of community and the character that comes with it.

We have all had difficult situations to work through, and like Covid 19, some came with ramifications that were life altering. As I contemplate the current situation (and past situations), there are aspects of character that reflect who we are, and more importantly, reflect our standing when the dust settles. The character for success.

Curiosity and Adaptability — ask questions to understand the situation. Be curious about the situation; understand the situation; know the situation. Seek out knowledge and be willing to adapt to the circumstances you have to work with. Knowledge will inevitably bring change and It’s important to embrace it — no matter how uncomfortable.

Honesty and Transparency — speak truth and be willing to share that truth. Full Stop

Compassion and Kindness — be willing to help others. Offering a helping hand is important, but remember empathy for how someone is feeling (or how they are reacting) can help with connection and understanding, and this will most likely lead to a more successful outcome. It’s possible that unexpected response was not because the person is difficult, but rather because they are anxious.

Grit and Determination — “I will not stop until it is done”. This is the birth place of all those good things we like to talk about: “New ways of doing things”, “Creative ideas”, “Overcoming obstacles”, “INNOVATION”, “Out of the box thinking”, “Success”, et cetera.

Courage — introduce a new virus into the population that disrupts the way we live, makes people sick, and causes death — it will cause anxiousness, anxiety and fear to be sure. The only way to check these feelings (and deal with the situation) is with courage. Even if you are just pretend to be courageous, that will work too.

Rising to the challenge, putting your best foot forward and bringing out the best in people — definitely important when it’s important, but then again, shouldn’t that be every day.

iamgpe

Surrender the narrative...

Why would anyone ever want to surrender the podium and in effect give the microphone to a substitute? It just seems very counter intuitive; after all, who can tell your story better than you? More affectionately called the narrative, this is the story we tell others (and ourselves) as we spin our tale. Make no mistake, this narrative is extremely important as it represents your personal brand (and the substance behind it), who you are, what you are doing, where you are going, your value, and your potential. The narrative conveys and controls the message that is you.

So back to the original question, “If you want to control your message, why would you ever give up control and risk having your story told wrong? “ The reason is it reflects the confidence and conviction of who you are and what you’re doing, and even more importantly, validates your story. As they say, there is nothing more impactful than the endorsement from someone else.

I learned this lesson a very long time ago around a dinner table — I was asked (with venom) why I felt our business unit was so special? To that question I turned to the VP at the time and suggested he could answer that question better than I could. And he did, and I nodded, and the person who asked the question frowned. Now in fairness I knew the VP was an informal supporter so our narrative was aligned and it was simply fun to watch him disappoint the naysayers around the table. Where it can be less entertaining is when people are asked to speak on your behalf but they may not be aligned.

I can remember, with great clarity I might add, the Chief Commercial Officer asking my team about how it was going, what they thought of the program, and by extension how I was doing. I sat at the back of the room quietly, and just listened. I watched the discussion play out hoping my surrogate narrators were “on message”. My mantra as they spoke was, “Don’t say anything; don’t say anything; whatever you do, don’t say a fucking word”.

Why you may ask was telling myself this?

If I had said something I would have compromised who was speaking, compromised the message, and most importantly compromised my conviction with what we were doing. There is also another reason, an important truism that seems to get forgotten more often than not — sometimes you need to shut the fuck up and let someone else speak.

Something I will admit I forget every so often.

iamgpe