I know what some of you are thinking! You are thinking, “Todd, you are the last one who should be writing about normal!!” Well, thanks!! I’m thinking about the word normal as it relates to the pandemic. Before you read on, though, set your political views aside for the moment.
The only part of our life that is normal is where we are at right now in our journey. Our present circumstances define our normal. It is what is happening to us at the moment. We can’t change our journey in the past and we can only dream about our journey in the future. What is normal is today.
When someone says I’d like to go back to normal pre-COVID days, we know that isn’t possible. Or someone says I can’t wait until COVID is over and things are normal again. Won’t happen.
Reason?
Change and uncertainty are part of our lives. The only time there isn’t change and uncertainty is in the moment. There was change and uncertainty pre-COVID and there will continue to be afterwards. The magnitude of change and uncertainty varies, but it is always there.
What matters is how we deal with that change. How do we fight through the pain points of change and uncertainty? We all have to deal with it.
It all starts by putting your own oxygen mask on first. We need to be able to breathe first if we are going to be able to help others. Just like on the airplane when the flight attendants go through the safety steps, including how to buckle your seatbelt, we have to take care of ourselves first. Once we do that we can help co-workers or family members.
Whether I work with businesses or individuals, I always speak about starting from the inside out to get that mask on and the best way to do that is with core values. These are those authentic beliefs that we closest to our soul. Sounds pretty mysterious doesn’t it? Core values guide us through decisions and sometimes without us even knowing. When we fail, and we all do, we lean on them for support to help us get to the other side of the challenge. Imagine if all of your employees had a mutual respect for each other beyond what you produce or offer! Core values are a good starting point.
Do you know the one thing that we all absolutely have in common and share? 24 hours in a day. The BIG difference is in how we use them. When is the last time you did a study of your use of time? It can provide amazing results and sometimes we may not want to learn how we use our time. I recently did it again and found an extra fifteen minutes for exercise in the morning. I know I won’t become, nor do I want to be, a marathon runner, but it is a good start to the day. And don’t get me started about how much time we spend on social media. Imagine the positive ramifications if each employee found an extra ten minutes a day. Do. The. Math!
There is more and more demand to provide supportive programming for dealing with change and uncertainty in the workplace. Pick a topic and businesses have to deal with it. Broadband. Workforce. Housing and Transportation for Employees. Leadership. Network Development. Marketing. Sales.
While I can support you in dealing with these issues, consider how you can change your organization and employees from the inside out and help them put their oxygen mask on first.
Then we can get back to normal!