This Magic Monday we take a look at six key principles for navigating through life, whether at work or home, when things are so uncertain.
In our world today, where everything from school to grocery shopping to business meetings and conference events seem to be in a constant state of flux, the ability to be nimble and innovative has become crucial for everyone. Often, it takes everything we have just to put one step in front of the other. Navigating this season is still difficult and not necessarily intuitive in life and in work-life.
Thankfully, Gary Burnison, CEO of management consulting firm Korn Ferry, together with the CEOs of UPS and Nike, have discussed six fundamental principles to aid in navigating this kind of uncertainty, which I’ve summarized below:
1. Anticipate what lies ahead.
When nothing is ‘normal,’ sometimes it can help to plan for the reality that things may not go according to plan. Learn to be okay with that, and have some contingency plans in your back pocket.
2. Navigate and course-correct in real-time.
I’m sure we’ve all had moments on the road where we’ve had to make snap decisions based on our velocity, other drivers, our passengers, and so on – and all any of us can do is use the knowledge we have to make the best decision in the moment. Life now is no different.
3. Communicate continually.
When people, projects and emotions are consistently fluctuating, clear communication is the key! Communicate what you can when you can – early and often.
4. Listen to what you don’t want to hear.
More than ever, it’s so important to listen to comprehend, not just to hear, which will sometimes mean listening to things you may not want to hear and learning from it.
5. Learn to fail fast and adapt faster.
Failure is not a term many of us like. But the reality is, the sooner you can rule out what not to do, the quicker you can set yourself up for real success.
6. Lead: Be all in, all the time.
Courage and shame researcher Brené Brown has summed it up well by stating, “Vulnerability is not winning or losing. It’s having the courage to show up and be seen when we have no control over the outcome.” I can’t think of anything more suited to 2020 than that.
Friends, we are traversing uncharted waters this year, but we’re here together, and I believe if each of us can take even one of these principles and apply it, that we will become all the stronger for it.