How are you using The Great Pause?
Building an authentic and intentional approach to your business
The period we are living through has been referred to as ‘The Great Pause’ and I like the connotations of this as it speaks of an opportunity – a gift of time.
Layer on top of this, all the good stuff we are seeing – re-connecting with kindness, the simple things that bring us joy, perhaps some re-calibration of what matters to us – and I think we do indeed have an opportunity to use this time to set ourselves up for a successful – and importantly – authentic and intentional – future.
Like many business owners, I have had a crazy time over the last few weeks, and many of the services and products I have built up are totally different (and better?) than they would have been this time a few months ago.
We are all thinking about how we pivot our businesses and how best we serve our customers; there is the opportunity also though to review how we want things to be.
Businesses, particularly small ones, often mutate and change as a result of the work that comes in, particularly in the early days – and it can be easy to go off track a bit. So why not use this pause to re-set your business?
Some questions to ask yourself:
- What do you most value / enjoy about what you do? How much time do you currently spend doing this?
- What would be the 1 wish you would have for your business? How much time do you currently spend making that dream a reality?
- What makes you come alive? What are you really good at? Are you spending lots of time in this space?
- What does the word ‘success’ look like, uniquely to you?
- Are you working authentically, or putting on a bit of an act? Is that ok?
When considering these questions, imagine for a moment that you have the opportunity to launch a new business, with the benefit of all your experience and some added perspective based on your thinking above. What might that business spend its time delivering, and how does it deliver it?
As Johann Hari points out in his brilliant book Lost Connections, we humans evolved on the savannas of Africa and the reason you and I exist today is that they worked out how to cooperate. “Every human instinct is honed not for life on our own, but for life like this, in a tribe”.
There is:
- An opportunity now to also think about who we have in our lives, who we need for what, and what they need from us, and consider that every action we take has a huge impact, often one that we can’t see.
- The real power in meaningful connection – who can help you?
- Much to be concerned about, and this continues as we navigate the next stages of lockdown. But there are some real opportunities also.
How might you choose to use The Great Pause?
About the Author:
Jo Hompstead
Workplace Culture & Relationships Consultant
www.johompstead.com
Recent Comments