Seize this moment to define the future you want. Create that future by listening to your customers, envisioning the best possible outcome, communicating the vision, making some tough choices, and mapping the steps to your destination.
There will be a post-COVID world, to be sure, and it will have echoes of the pre-COVID world—but it also will be shaped by what we’ve learned and what we’ve lost during the pandemic. It also can be shaped by our purposeful intent to create the future we want. In the business realm, this starts with anticipating customer needs and predicting future demands so we can deliver value and create success.
How will you know what the new normal will look like? Who can predict the future? The answer is you. Take the advice of Abraham Lincoln, who is credited (probably wrongly) with saying: “The best way to predict your future is to create it.” It’s up to you to create the future.
Does that sound too grandiose? It isn’t. It’s in your control.
The new normal won’t arrive with a proclamation and a national holiday in its name. It will be created one piece at a time by myriad innovative companies—some old and some new. These companies will forge a deep understanding of their customers’ new needs and will have the vision, the processes, and the commitment to respond to them in the post-COVID environment. To thrive in that new environment you have to be one of those innovators and grow as a leader.
Here’s how you do it:
1. Seize the Moment
Get going. Don’t wait for others to lead the way. They don’t know any more than you do. Moving quickly will show leadership to your team and your customers, seize the competitive advantage, and put you in the driver’s seat. Don’t wait to find out what is going to happen—decide what it is going to happen (based on the steps below) and start working on that now. If you wait to see what happens, you will be too late.
2. Listen to Your Customers’ Needs
Talk with a diverse range of customers to gain insights. Don’t assume you know what their concerns are. Get a firsthand earful about their needs, their COVID-related pain and loss, and what they think they will need to navigate beyond that. Then apply your experience and judgment to what you hear. This will put you in a strong position to write the first post-pandemic chapter for your business.
3. Imagine the Finish Line
Get a team together to process what you’ve learned. Think about the destination first, not the obstacles. Allow yourself and your team to think big. Think about your products, but also think holistically about how you can support your customers’ business beyond your products. There will be time later to temper your vision with financial realities, but start by asking what you would do if there were no constraints. That will open your process up to bigger, more compelling ideas.
4. Communicate your Outlook and Ideas
Articulate your vision. Develop a rough roadmap to communicate your intentions. Let your employees and your customers know where you would like to go. Share your vision of the new normal for your market.
5. Prioritize Boldly
Decide what you will stop doing in order to take this on. This is a demanding step and requires courage, commitment, and steely determination. This is where your plan starts the journey from dream to reality. Lead like your future depends on it. (It does.)
6. Create a Plan of Action
Break the plan into manageable steps. There are many clichés to help you with this: “A journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step.” “How do you eat an elephant? One bite at a time.” I’m sure you know plenty more. Pick the one that resonates for you and get started. These can be small steps, but getting the ball rolling in a tangible way sends a crucial message to your team and your customers.
You have the chance to be the leader, the one who sets the tone, if you move quickly. The sooner you set about defining the future, the better your chances of truly influencing it.
The sooner you communicate your vision to your customers, the more faith you will build with them. The sooner you communicate your vision to your employees, the faster you can inspire them and lead with purpose .
Abe Lincoln was a great leader. He didn’t wait to find out how his country’s struggles would end. He envisioned the future he wanted and seized the reins. You have the opportunity and the responsibility to do that now.
If you’ve found this article interesting and would like to learn more about how its author, Steve Mendelsohn, can help you in this area of leadership development, please contact us for more information.