Will anything stay as it used to be? Will anything stay the old way?
21/03/2021
We hear nothing will be the same. A new normal, a new reality - although no one can clearly define these fashionable terms - have entered our lives. A terrifying escalation of ideas, pace, action and reaction is taking place. We have an oversupply of change, shortness of breath and apnea. And chaos. Will we stay who we are? Or will the pressure of the world - changes and expectations, or the vision of rewards and of success - throw us off our path and out of our identity? Will we break our inner compass?
It is interesting that the lion's share of human transformation, transformation of leaders, is looking inside oneself, dusting off personal values, understanding their importance in our lives. Instead of putting on new masks and duplicating the behavior of those whom we consider effective, we need to accept ourselves. If we are clear about what we live by and the strong foundation of our principles, it is as if we have the tools to navigate the endless sea. It is easy to let the waves throw us in the wrong direction. It may result in taking bad decisions or being stuck in limiting circumstances. Life is not black and white: it presents us with difficult situations and even more difficult choices. Sometimes we don't even realize that we have a choice - we drown out strong questions that arise in our head or that others ask us. We believe there are no other options. We pretend there is no problem. We accept inertia. Where do we draw the impassable lines of what is and is not acceptable to us? What boundaries will we never cross, because it will impoverish us, weaken or even ruin us? What drains our energy and joy of life the most are not financial troubles, lack of rewards, or merits not recognized, but the violation of our personal values, self-denial, and the inability to look in the mirror. Hands up if you've never rubbed up against it.
In leadership as in life, we are human and we cannot resist many temptations. We are seduced by money, popularity, and influence. We are paralyzed by fear, we forget what we can do, we lose our calling, talents and passions. Sometimes we even drown out the need for satisfaction - "Can't they just let me be"? They can. But maybe it's worth asking yourself if you really want to be left alone, or whether you're just enjoying going back to the comfort zone. It is worth recalling what ignites and enlivens us; when we are strongest; when we have the greatest impact and the highest energy. And what is it like when we have "that something"? We attract when we honor our personal values, when we are authentic. At every workplace, we can be ourselves and at every position we can lose ourselves.
How not to get lost in this sharp turn of the pandemic, this new normal, this new reality?
Let's hold on to our values. Unchanged.
