Not sure where I first heard this statement but, as we find ourselves weeks into one of the most challenging business environments of our lifetimes, this is my rudder in these choppy waters.
“Don’t count the days. Make the days count.”
You may be one of many who find themselves in an unplanned and unwelcome holding pattern. And in a workspace – your home – that fails to provide the daily structure, camaraderie and motivation you have grown used to at your office.
You yearn for life BC (Before Covid) and are counting the days to return to normal.
But wait a minute…
If you think back to 2020 BC, you’ll recall the strain of a constant state of busyness characterized by pressure to multi-task, work late, and forgo your sanity. All in a quest to get everything done. In the past, I have often asked sales professionals about the critical success factor to stronger results, “How much time do you dedicate to quality uninterrupted thinking?” The consistent response has been, “Jill, we don’t have time to breathe, let alone think.”
Well, now you do.
Working remotely has removed the daily distractions and interruptions of an office environment. On any given day, you now receive fewer emails from clients and colleagues, deadlines are pushing back, and urgent is finally giving way to important. The one thing you have inherited is more breathing space.
Most of us are longer-term optimists believing that the world will return to normal. The questions of when this will happen, and what “future normal” will look like, remain unanswered. One thing I can predict with a degree of certainty is that, at some point in the future, we will be back to running like the proverbial headless chicken with our bulging calendars, lengthy To-Do lists, and bemoaning the lack of time to breathe.
So let’s not waste the silver lining in this dark storm.
Make these days count.
This may be the single greatest opportunity in your career to take stock of you. To reflect and evolve. And, hear this… The future world will demand that you show up differently.
REFLECT. Depending on your situation, you will want to consider these important questions in context of your role, your career, or your life. And maybe all three.
- What has been working for you?
- What hasn’t? What do you need to stop doing?
- Where has discomfort and fear prevented you from doing what is important to your professional success and your personal fulfillment?
- And how do you now want to move forward to a strong future?
EVOLVE. Prepare for a future for which you may not have planned. Use this time to deepen your understanding of the people and the businesses you will serve.
- How will your clients’ needs, interests and expectations have shifted as the world re-opens?
- What skills will you want to master to sustain relevance in a recovered world?
- How might your products and services need to be adjusted?
- Will your current prospect and client list be relevant in the future? Or do you need to be exploring new markets and contacts?
You‘ve probably heard this sentiment making the rounds of social media, “Never let a good crisis go to waste.” Some consider it insensitive. I say it’s smart. Too many of us have been running so hard, and fast, over the years, we’ve unknowingly dug ourselves into the rut of “doing what we do” even when it no longer makes sense. It will be too easy to fall back into that rut if we don’t use this luxury of time to prepare for our future success in a different world.
“Don’t count the days. Make the days count.”
