Chaos, something we are all familiar with, is defined as a state of utter confusion or disorder. And I don’t know about you but at first glance, that certainly feels like an adequate way to describe these past few weeks.
The daily race that we’ve all been running has come to an abrupt halt.
Business, as usual, has become business as (un)usual, and as plans get put on hold, we find ourselves pulled over in a temporary pitstop.
It’s easy to get caught up in doom and gloom. As business begins to slow, the feeling of standstill is unsettling, and our minds begin to fixate on when things will go back to normal.
It’s at times like this that I feel it’s important to remember that forwards movement doesn’t always equate to progress.
In F1, drivers hurtle down the pit straight at speeds of almost 230 mph in a bid to cross the finish line first. Fractions of a second separate first and fifth. Careers are made and broken by the finest of margins. So why, in a sport where time is everything, do teams make the decision to stop?
The answer is simple… by taking time out to change tires and make adjustments, teams and cars can run faster and more efficiently when they re-join the race.
So, let’s avoid looking at this time purely as one of crisis, and instead choose to view it as a time of opportunity. A time to hit pause, to re-think, re-tune, maybe even reset?
Now, I’m a big believer that you can’t just save your way out of a crisis. And if history has taught us anything it’s that times like this often prove to be fertile grounds for an opportunity.
So where possible don’t cut, re-allocate. Invest time and efforts on longer-term planning to ensure that you emerge from the pit lane strong and re-join the race in a better position than when you started.
At TeamWass we like to say that assumption is the mother of all f*ck ups. The biggest mistake we can make right now is to assume that things will go back to what we once knew as “normal”.
A daunting, or exciting thought depending on how you choose to look at it.
Like everything in life, it’s a matter of perspective… For me, I like to think that opportunity lies right around the next corner for those who keep one eye on tomorrow. So let’s use this time wisely and do everything we can to make the most of this pit stop.
Dave Thomson is AVP, Head of Business Strategy at Wasserman and is contactable at Dthompson@teamwass.com
