{"id":712,"date":"2020-07-06T19:03:28","date_gmt":"2020-07-06T09:03:28","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.herrmann.com.au\/blog\/?p=712"},"modified":"2021-08-27T15:22:37","modified_gmt":"2021-08-27T05:22:37","slug":"adaptive-mindsets-building-resilience-on-the-other-side-of-covid-19-lockdowns","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/herrmann.com.sg\/2020\/07\/adaptive-mindsets-building-resilience-on-the-other-side-of-covid-19-lockdowns\/","title":{"rendered":"Adaptive mindsets: building resilience on the other side of COVID-19 lockdowns"},"content":{"rendered":"
[et_pb_section fb_built=”1″ _builder_version=”3.22″ da_disable_devices=”off|off|off” global_colors_info=”{}” da_is_popup=”off” da_exit_intent=”off” da_has_close=”on” da_alt_close=”off” da_dark_close=”off” da_not_modal=”on” da_is_singular=”off” da_with_loader=”off” da_has_shadow=”on”][et_pb_row _builder_version=”3.25″ background_size=”initial” background_position=”top_left” background_repeat=”repeat” global_colors_info=”{}”][et_pb_column type=”4_4″ _builder_version=”3.25″ custom_padding=”|||” global_colors_info=”{}” custom_padding__hover=”|||”][et_pb_text _builder_version=”4.10.4″ background_size=”initial” background_position=”top_left” background_repeat=”repeat” hover_enabled=”0″ global_colors_info=”{}” sticky_enabled=”0″]<\/p>\n
The lockdowns are being lifted. Whether self-imposed or through government authority, this period of stasis is ending. Our process of re-engagement has begun.<\/p>\n
We\u2019re all grieving missed opportunities – seminars not attended, business deals now in limbo, cancelled trips. But as Sir Richard Branson likes to say, \u201cBusiness opportunities are like buses. There\u2019s always another coming around\u201d. One meeting is nothing in a lifetime of meetings. One deal is just one deal.<\/p>\n
I asked my family, friends and clients to reflect on opportunities lost, on the decisions that they could not make and whether those opportunities were bullets that they had dodged. Their responses were revealing.<\/p>\n
The founder of an exciting start-up in Silicon Valley, offered my friend\u2019s son (we\u2019ll call him S) a \u2018dream job\u2019. S, young and ambitious, bought into the vision and the opportunity to grow a new business. He was all set to give up a steady job and equity in his existing company – when I asked him if that was wise, he said, \u201cEntrepreneurs need to have ownership interest\u201d.<\/p>\n
But then COVID-19\u00a0 struck. The start-up laid off people and is struggling for survival. It turned out COVID-19 merely sped up what would have happened anyway. S dodged that bullet. His reflection: he fell for an interesting vision, the founder\u2019s charisma and a desire to be a part of the successful start-up club.<\/p>\n
S is very smart. He based his decision on his analysis of the business model and the track record of the founder. He believed everything else would fall in place. But it simply wasn\u2019t enough, and it will not be enough as we continue to adapt to the \u2018new normal\u2019.<\/p>\n
Our perspective, the way we will now look at the world, will determine how we deal with the crisis. The right perspective, based on an adaptive mindset, has a way of cutting obstacles\u2014and adversity\u2014down to size. To adapt is to think – to view a crisis from a fresh angle so it loses its power over you.<\/p>\n
It\u2019s clear that the wide divergence between those who adapt and those who adapt badly or not at all will be very high. COVID-19\u2019s hit list includes real estate, dating, restaurant buffets, news media and in-store shopping.<\/p>\n
While there are many factors that will shape the divergence, the way we think and respond is a key factor in our control. Awareness of how we think and the ability to harness the inherent diversity of thinking in organisations is key to adapting.<\/p>\n
According to Ryan Holiday, perspective has two definitions<\/a>. Context<\/b>: a sense of the larger picture of the world, not just what is immediately in front of us, and Framing<\/b>: an individual\u2019s unique way of looking at the world.<\/p>\n Both definitions matter. We must deal with changes that are \u2018adaptive,\u2019 or \u2018technical,\u2019 or a combination of both.\u00a0 According to Harvard Senior Lecturer in Public Leadership Ronald Heifetz, \u201cTechnical problems<\/a>, while often challenging, can be solved by applying existing know-how and the organisation\u2019s current problem-solving processes. Adaptive problems resist these kinds of solutions because they require individuals throughout the organisation to change their mindsets because often the challenge lies\u00a0within, in the way we think\u201d.<\/p>\n As we learn to coexist with COVID-19, organisations are opening up and they need to be COVID-compliant. To treat this as only a technical change is natural as we create standard operating procedures and follow guidelines given by the government. But to assume that this challenge is primarily a technical one may mask actual issues.How do we distinguish between adaptive and technical changes?<\/h3>\n
You might discover that your otherwise motivated employees are reluctant to come into the office because they have elderly parents staying with them. Or your CEO is more concerned with the business than their employees, showing little sympathy for staff concerns. Whatever the underlying problems, standard operating procedures can\u2019t solve them. Instead, changes in behaviour need to occur, and that won\u2019t be easy.<\/p>\n