The “Roughly Right Strategy” 8 Ways to Embrace Your Next Normal By Mary Byers
H
umans love certainty. And we love to plan and decide and strategize when we are certain about the facts, the future and our assumptions. But what about decision making in times of uncertainty? The reality is there is no such thing as 100% certainty. In order to make confident decisions, however, we often fool ourselves into believing there is. We assume business will carry on as usual. Our customers will continue to bank with us. And we’ll meet our monthly goals and projections. And then, a pandemic hits – making assumptions impossible and destroying our plans. Worst of all, perhaps, it pulls the rug of certainty out from under us. This is where we find ourselves today.
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• May-June 2021
But all is not lost. As Seth Kahan, author of Getting Innovation Right, shares, “…the same circumstances that are causing discomfort are also midwifing the future.” He’s right. The very things that are challenging you and your organization now present an opportunity for change. COVID is a tailwind that forces innovation and as we’ve had to revise plans at a breathtaking, heart-stopping pace, we’re showing ourselves what we’ve been capable of all along. Yet many organizations are still clinging to the past, assuming that the decisions we’re making are “forever” vs. “for now.” It’s true that some are. But here’s the harsh reality: for the foreseeable future, it’s “business as unusual” rather than “business as usual.” And rather than innovating with the idea that we go back to “normal” after the pandemic passes, we should be focused on creating the business of the future. That’s what thriving companies are doing.
