ClickCease
Business, Faith, Faith at Work
Convene
Do Not Worry

‘Do not worry.’ We’ve read Matthew 6:25-34 in the Sermon on the Mount, but what does that look like on a day-to-day, minute-by-minute basis? God knows our every worry, fear, and concern – and He can handle it. Many thanks to Darrell Passwater, Convene Forum Team leader, for his encouragement to think about how our lives might be different by truly living out this scriptural principle.

Do Not Worry
Greg Leith
Who Will Lead Your Firm the Day After the ...

Got a quick minute to chat? I’ve been wanting to share something with you as you lead in the midst of the election cycle in the USA or when your political election takes place in your country. When the dust settles on the election and the new country leader is declared, one thing will still be as true as it is right now. You’ll still be the one leading your firm the day after the election. Your team members will still come to work the day after the winner is declared. They’ll still be looking to you for leadership, for a paycheck, for a sense of community at their workplace.

What do they want most that only you can deliver? It’s meaning. That meaning they’re looking for begins with you and your leadership. To be sure, what Washington DC does actually can impact your business significantly, however, the president of the United States or the leader of any country does not lead your firm. You do. It’s an enterprise entrusted to you to lead as a steward. It’s a place where people look to you for answers, where people want to be part of a team that cares about them and where people want to be valued, appreciated, and loved. The next president of the country will not show up this week at your office to encourage your team, fix a broken piece of equipment, hire the next team member, sell a big account, or cast a bold vision about how your team will reach your goals and impact the culture.

Who Will Lead Your Firm the Day After the Election?
Chip Neidigh
A Safe Place To Fall
A Safe Place To Fall
Dave Ulrich
3 Principles of Hope That Enable Transitions

As we find ourselves mid-October and a blink away from a new calendar year, it is an opportunity to prepare for how we view transitions. Transitions allow for reflection and renewal, for letting go and beginning anew, and for learning from the past and creating the future. Instead of laying out trends for the next year, I would like to comment on a fundamental enabler of any transition: hope. Leaders who want to improve, CEO’s who work toward excellence, HR professionals who aspire to deliver more value, and employees who seek well-being all achieve their transitions by realizing hope.

Hope integrates many of the positive traits that shape transitions for others and matter to me personally: learning, patience, service, faith, humility, optimism, gratitude, and so forth. I send hundreds of formal and informal e-mails every month to invite people to programs, to thank people for attending programs, to check in on those I mentor, and to stay connected to those I care about. I begin almost every one of these notes with “Hope you are well.” Hope is one of my personal desires, tag lines, and biases and an enabler of any transition.

If I could implant one trait in my family, friends, and colleagues who are undergoing continual transition, it would be hope. 

3 Principles of Hope That Enable Transitions
Business, Communication, Leadership, Talent
Brian Audia
Five Reasons to Build a People-first, ...

If you're a business owner or a CEO looking for ways to grow and improve your company, then Five Reasons to Build a People-first, Purpose-driven Company, by Brian Audia will give you a front-row seat to learning key principles you can implement in your business to outperform your peers!

Five Reasons to Build a People-first, Purpose-driven Company

black swan

Coronavirus: Dealing with a Black Swan – Part 2

The Coronavirus is the Black Swan that is now affecting all aspects of life. And, unfortunately, it keeps bringing unanticipated aftershocks. However, fortunately, we are not entirely powerless. Now is the time to plan for the additional, company-specific Black Swan effects, the aftershocks that may happen, and your ultimate recovery. You will have to think differently about the immediate future.

Think differently:

One way to think differently and start protecting yourself against the aftershocks of this Black Swan (Black Cygnets, if you will) that follow, is to work through this exercise: 

  • have your team identify a minimum of ten events, or series of events, that would severely impact your business to the point of irrelevancy or failure; 

    • Note: a minimum of ten events is required; the more, the better. The ten-event minimum will force the identification of events that typically would not be considered in the ordinary course of business.

  • Include all events no matter how outlandish they may seem; 

  • Your next Black Swan aftershocks will be on your list in the eight, nine, or ten spots (start from the bottom and work your way).

Now is the time to act: 

  • Identify the actions that must be taken immediately for each Black Cygnet, and take them; 

  • Identify for each Black Cygnet the "inflection point" that identifies possible future action 

    • Note: an “inflection point” is evidence, in the environ in which you work, that the next Black Cygnet event is coming to fruition, but has not yet happened;

  • establish a process to actively and aggressively search for the "inflection point." 

  • For each Black Cygnet identify which actions can be postponed until an "inflection point" is reached; 

  • Assign a specific team member(s) to search, on a regular and periodic basis, for each particular "inflection point;” 

  • Assign a specific team member(s) to initiate immediate action once the "inflection" point is reached.

 

The identification of “inflection points” provides an early warning signal that a negative impact on your business is imminently possible but not necessarily probable. This process provides a mechanism that lessens the possibility of taking drastic action should the Black Cygnet event fail to materialize.

Further, using the same process described above identify those “inflection points” that indicate that the current crisis is approaching its conclusion for your organization. Now is the time to plan to initiate the recovery of your operation. This crisis will pass, and you need to be ready to take advantage of the recovery at the earliest possible moment.

So, right now, the coronavirus crisis continues to unfold. Every day is filled with uncertainty. Minimize that uncertainty by planning now for both continuous negative impact and the ultimate recovery. Think and act differently now to minimize possible risks and optimize potential opportunities.

About the Author

2018-05-07-petty_michael_web.jpg

Dr. Michael Petty is the co-founder and consulting-futurist at Flagship Futures Group, LLC in Washington, DC. He brings over forty-five years of strategic and financial experience to the service of his clients. His most significant value to his clients lies in his expertise in the areas of strategic thinking, planning and execution; shareholder value creation; and leadership development.

Learn more about Dr. Petty here, or get in contact with him here.

Coronavirus: Dealing with a Black Swan – Part 1

If you’ve never stared a “Black Swan” in the face, you are now! A Black Swan is an event that happens unexpectedly, has significant, even devastating consequences, and is then rationalize. The current Coronavirus is a Black Swan.

Our world has changed, dramatically for some, in a matter of a few short weeks. Most of us are scrambling to safeguard both our families and the businesses we steward. Most of us will be unscathed health-wise, but most will experience an impact on our companies. Some of us are somewhat prepared to weather this Black Swan, many of us are not.

You may question how can we possibly prepare for a Black Swan like a Coronavirus, that originated in a country thousands of miles away, in a "wet market" (whatever that is), and from a culture that eats exotic animals? The answer to that question is: we have to think and plan differently!

You might question how we can think differently about a Black Swan such as this? 

One way to think differently and start protecting yourself against the next Black Swan, and the aftershocks that follow, is to work through this exercise: 

  • have your team identify a minimum of ten events, or series of events, that would severely impact your business to the point of irrelevancy or failure;

  • a minimum of ten events is required; the more, the better;

  • any and all events should be included no matter how outlandish they may seem;

  • your next Black Swan or aftershocks will be on your list in the eight, nine, or ten spots (start from the bottom and work your way).

  • challenge each event and identify the action that must be taken immediately, or in the very near future.

You may question that no one would ever think of the Coronavirus in this exercise. Well, that may be true. But you might include the disruption of your Chinese supply chain; the shortage of a significant device component, like test kits; or the curtailment or cancellation of a substantial contract for a local or national sporting event, like the NCAA National Championship Basketball Tournaments. If done with diligence and creativity you will identify the more specific Black Swan you may be experiencing now or in the near future.

There will be continuous shock waves emanating from this Black Swan over the next several months. Now is the time to identify those potential impacts, assess the implications, and plan for them as best you can. The exercise above will help you.

This type of exercise should preferably be done as part of your regular strategic thinking process, for once you’ve identified your Black Swan you can prepare for it. And, by definition, it is no longer a Black Swan because if and when it happens it is not unexpected, and, because you've planned for it the impact will be minimized or avoided altogether.

Now is the time to plan for your next Black Swan, and there will be a next one.

About the Author

2018-05-07-petty_michael_web.jpg

Dr. Michael Petty is the co-founder and consulting-futurist at Flagship Futures Group, LLC in Washington, DC. He brings over forty-five years of strategic and financial experience to the service of his clients. His most significant value to his clients lies in his expertise in the areas of strategic thinking, planning and execution; shareholder value creation; and leadership development.

Learn more about Dr. Petty here, or get in contact with him here.