Inside-Out Living
"My roots are showing" ... it is a line many of us have used when standing in front of the mirror as we enter week 8 of living in captivity during the pandemic of 2020. It is also a line that caught my eye when Ron Tite recently posted it as a Linked In comment from his profile. Ron very eloquently went on to describe the positives of being able to now peer into co-workers lives through the magic of video-conferencing to catch a glimpse of the "other-half" of our lives - where we live, who we live with, what we value enough to keep in our surroundings. He also said this new normal of video conferencing with co-workers was an opportunity to look at some of the elements that define us (our roots) as individuals and perhaps, enable a more compassionate rather than comparative future together with the people we work with.
I loved the analogy and spin of this now common phrase. It resonated ... and it also inspired some lingering thoughts from me.
What really defines YOU?
Family. Pets. Home. Space. All visual things that expose what we value. But do they actually define us? Are they truly the authentic "roots" of who we are? Though they are certainly critical external elements that influence our story, I believe our true roots, like most of nature, come from within us and go deep. Our internal roots are what gets exposed during times of hardship, whether we want them to or not. To follow the analogy, like most of nature, roots are what ground us, keep us steady when the wind, rain, snow, heat come ... and they are also what allows us to bounce back and live when our "life above ground" gets destroyed. Some roots go deeper than others. All roots keep us growing. Our authentic human roots truly get exposed in:
how we show up in times of struggle
how our values reveal and express themselves to others
how we instinctively respond in good times and bad
how quickly we rebound and adapt from the unexpected
how our unconscious core values surface as conscious behaviors
Put simply ... difficulty doesn't create character - it reveals it. From the Inside-Out.
So what does that mean for Business?
So let's flip this thinking over to the business context. Businesses have been hit with an unprecedented global shut down. We now have an opportunity to literally and figuratively "sink or swim". We can sink deep into our roots and ground ourselves with our corporate values as our anchors to weather the storm. Or we can paddle faster and harder and try to stay afloat while the waves of disruption keep crashing in. Option 1 will help us plan for the evolution required for the long game that will help us emerge stronger, better, relevant. Option 2 ... well, we may survive this current storm, but we will be exhausted and barely alive - or we may drown in the sea of disruption that sank us. Here's a simple question to ask yourselves as a business - Do you know what drives you in good times and bad? Are you letting your roots show? It's actually not a bad thing. A couple more questions to ask:
How are you showing up for your employees, your partners, your customers?
How are you expressing your vision, mission statement in times of business as UNusual rather than business as usual?
What was your business response to this in March - April - May- 2020? What does that say about you as a business?
How have you adapted for the unexpected? Are you continuing to evolve? Are you accepting that there needs to be a "new normal" - with your employees, your partners and your customers?
Did you make decisions that align to your core/corporate values as a business? Will you continue to anchor your decisions in corporate values?
Bottomline:
This is an opportunity for you as business to "walk the talk" in a way that authentically "exposes your roots" to your customers. How are you going to show up to your employees, partners and customers? You get to write your COVID-19 business story today for your tomorrow ... may I encourage you to make it a good one worth reading and worth remembering.
One final thought: As a business, don't be afraid to let your roots show ... it will be what enables you to not only survive, but to thrive authentically from the inside-out through this disruption. It is also likely the main thing your customers will remember about you from this history making moment in time. Let authenticity be your guide.