As we continue to learn a new way of life during this pandemic, we must look beyond the tragedy of it all and find the silver linings. People are looking deeper to identify ways to improve their lives, their relationships and themselves. Self-improvement is on the rise because we: 1) have less running around to do and more time for reflections and introspective meditation; and, 2) we’re having to spend far more time around the people we love, which reveals a lot about how we REALLY feel about our relationships and how we handle them. But what about business?
Same applies. We are looking more deeply at how we communicate and relate to each other from a business perspective and from a human relations perspective. Many of us are having to do it through a screen which in a weird way makes us look more directly into the eyes of our counterparts. We have to listen more intently because it doesn’t work when we try to speak over each other on a video call.
We work with people who are struggling, and we may not even know it. Current affairs have highlighted some ugly truths about our society. We have had to look hatred and injustice square in the face whether we wanted to or not. We work with people we can talk with and learn first-hand about a perspective that differs from our own. We have the opportunity to develop alliances we never imagined before, and we can expand our relationships beyond our ‘bubbles’.
How now do we make lemonade out of lemons? Every business has a product or service. What products and/or services do you currently offer that can help us through this time of great struggle and opportunity? What products and/or services do you offer that give you a platform to weave in healthy experiences that can open communication and build relationships? What products and/or services do you offer that encourage people to network with faces that don’t look like their own?
A big part of our problem are those BUBBLES. We aren’t always comfortable around things we’re unfamiliar with, things outside of our bubble, and that includes people. It has to go beyond just saying ‘hello’ in passing.
Let’s use our leadership to open opportunities to build bridges that start within and expand outside of the office, let’s think creatively and change the world.