There are so many signs of a great future ahead, especially after a long period of turmoil and dread. A good look at data, sentiment and simply the smiles again on people’s faces tell us that optimism never fades.
For good thoughts make for great growth!
And yet the shape of the future remains always in flux. It doesn’t happen automatically; it happens on purpose, a direction and destination that starts in our imagination. That’s why we have to be so careful of who and what we listen to - if we want to move forward and not back.
Case in point, the urge to “go back” to how things were - especially to “the office.” Recently a U.S. governor said, “Business leaders, tell everybody to come back… Give them a bonus to burn the Zoom app and come on back to work.” While the general sentiment is that it’s time to reconnect in person, the actual recommendation is worthy of a pause: Encouraging people to abandon the tools and progress that got them through a crisis (and in some cases higher than before) isn’t just about the nostalgia of office camaraderie.
It’s about what it means to grow.
“Farmers, abandon your tractors!”
“Teachers, turn off your computers!”
“Doctors, take out your leeches!”
These things would never be said,
Because what makes the farmer, teacher and doctor effective is the connection between their tools -
And their head.
Of course, it’s not either/or. But it’s still about leadership. Leading ourselves to see how far we’ve come, even during the most un-normal of times. That going back isn’t an option any more. Not because of rules or laws or even dangers. But because we have to to enjoy and benefit from one of the silverest linings of the last two years.
Fewer hours in traffic.
Flexible use of our resources.
More time on things that matter -
Both family and work, and play.
Better for the environment.
Safer for the body.
More pleasing to the people,
Both clients and employees alike.
And in so many cases, more productivity and value delivered than “Before Zoom” (BZ).
We are told that people need to “be together” for things to matter. And it’s true for a great many things. But before we learned to Zoom, our offices weren’t effective because we sat next to each other with our headphones on or faces hidden behind monitors or sitting in the lunchroom staring at our smartphones.
Our offices were good and strong to the extent not that we were in PROXIMITY, but the extent to which we felt that we BELONGED.
And that’s what we need to work on more than ever. Not closing the distance between the Zoom and the conference room. But the space between ourselves and others. The gap between the job and the purpose. The low signal in the connection of our people, not the WiFi in the office.
The future isn’t about how close we sit.
It’s about how much we fit.
And that starts with the vision of what makes a difference, far more than being located at a distance.
Imagine it!