Are you leading a crisis or a transformation?
Are you leading a crisis or a transformation? An interesting question out of a session by Jitske Kramer, a Dutch cultural anthropologist, about the collective culture shock we are in right now with the world.
Covid- 19 askes all of us to lead our businesses and lives during uncertainty, and bottom line there are 2 ways to look at it. She inspired me to write this blog, in which I gave my own interpretation on what she said about the “between no longer and not yet” phase.
You can see it as a crisis…
Fix things to survive on the short term and wait untill “it” is over. Take your managerial role, decide fast to survive. I think that’s something most of us did at the start. The how was different, healthcare was running as fast as they could to save lives. Others who had a choice reacted differently, some started running to stay in business, others leaned back and experienced it as a holiday at home. What all have in common is that it’s a temporarily change in behavior. How long this view can last is very personal and situational.
Or you can look at it as a transformation…
Which means you are exploring what will be sustainable differences for the future from how it was. What would you like to bring back from before Corona? What would you like to keep from this limited period we are in right now? How do your values look like and what will be the ideal picture for you when you can make your own choices again? What changes can you start making right now? How can you create energy and belief to start this, in yourself and in others?
End March I wrote a blog about different reflexes and felt this guiding question could be my personal compass: “How can I contribute, bringing in my true self, my energy and my full potential, to come through this difficult period all together and design some sustainable change at the same time to make it a better world after all?” I guess this question helps me to do the first steps in the transformation process within my circle of influence.
How do you lead uncertainty…since this is our daily reality?
“Honor the space between no longer and not yet” is a quote Jitske used and that expresses how I feel right now and want to act as a leader. Just being there, for myself and others, making the best out of what is, being honest that I do not have all the answers yet and let people around me feel that we are in this together. Stay calm, be realistic and optimistic about the future, although the outlines are not quite clear at the moment, as long a we can breathe there is life and hope.
We are not lost, we are in this together, we can do this together. So reach out to each other and use the silence of “between no longer and not yet”.
Where are you right now?
