As many of us are breaking up for Christmas Holidays… it’s a time to also reflect on what we’ve achieved over the past 12 months.
2020 has been a year like no other! Many businesses have had to shut, many have had to adapt and many have had the opportunity to carry on.
We all have goals… at the start, I’m sure many wrote… I would like to….. or I could achieve….. but how many of those things did you actually accomplish?
I’ll be taking a few moments to write what I actually did. And I’ll happily share that with you…. It’ important to write down and acknowledge what you did. Sometimes, even you may be surprised!
You’ve probably heard me say before, Reuse, Reduce… and Recycle.
We need to look after Planet Earth. But I’ve been recently asked, Bal… with this ban on petrol and diesel cars…. what do I do with my classic? – I want to do my bit for the environment but love my classic car.
Don’t you worry Sir…. I have found a solution for you!
Zero Labs – have a solution where by, you keep the looks of your awesome classic car… but go electric!
Personally, I think this is a great idea! –
Now, you can keep your classic car… but be kinder to the planet.
Sometimes, we feel we need everything now. Or as soon as possible. And when we don’t get it… we start to ask a series of questions – a bit of 5 Why Analysis….
When all we sometimes need is a little patience.
We need to reflect. Understand. And progress. Keep moving. Don’t stop…. Keep pushing and delivering. And if you’re good enough… (taken from Gary V.)
There’s a few things that Covid-19 Lockdown has taught us… in fact, it’s accelerated some things that were coming.
The evolution of the employee.
How we work.
And we’ve been able to evolve due to technology but also a shift in the mindset. A shift in thinking that is allowing us to add more value and be more productive.
Two examples I’d like to share,
I recall seeing in a signature of a senior leader, something along the lines of….. “I’m sending this email because this time works for me, if this is out of your working hours, I do not expect a reply”.
I recently undertook some learning – via LinkedIn Learning app. I did it in the evening. In my own time. And it was in short bursts.. about 10 videos each of which were 3 to 4mins long. It taught me a lot. In fact, made me do some ‘homework’ and really make me think.
That’s what it is about, right? – Learn, Think… Apply.
Would be great to hear example you may have, in terms of how you’re becoming an employee of the future…
When I was being taught/shown Lean… one of the most important items was to ask the question Why. And to delve into it, and get to the root cause.
Once you get to the root cause, you can then understand and start to fix the problem.
This also applies to why you need to do it. ‘Why’ is so powerful. Rather than the what. And people relate to the why…. It’s brilliantly explained by Simon Sinek below…
It’s crazy to see, and hear…. how many organisations have had to adopt a ‘digital mindset’ during the pandemic, because their previous/old business model wouldn’t be sustainable. They’ve had to increase their on-line presence, open an on-line store…. connect with customers, on-line.
Whilst this pressure, accelerated the transformation… it’s not the type of pressure many wanted. And everyone reacts differently to pressure. However… there’s some…. who have sparkled due to the pressure!
My Friday thought today is reflecting on where you want to be, what your ambitions are, what your passion is… and then making the right decisions today – on where you want to be.
It says it all in the above image. Just because you are right – doesn’t mean I am wrong. We just need to sometimes bring the other person, to look at what is happening, with the same view we have.
There’s a variety of reasons why we have different views. I won’t go into that today.
But what I did want to share is, always look at things differently.
Above is a 6 for one person. 9 for another.
For some, the below was a trampoline… for me, pubs close at 10 – rave club opens at 11…
In my last blog post, I spoke about how Whatsapp for Business can help your business or organisation prosper in the digital world.
Many, after reading that, did ask… but what about emails, Bal? – Surely people want to check you out on the world wide web and email you.
Yes…. and no.
Yes, you need a digital presence. So if you can have a simple website – then yes – do it! In fact, it depends what your business is – your target audience, etc… but yes… build a simple website.
As for emails….
That’s right – they are pre-Corona! Yes you can use emails, but less and less people are using emails. It’s all about the Instant Messaging. The quicker you get a reply, the quicker you can make a decision and the quicker you can make that sale or engage with the customer.
I was on the O2 website the other day. Looking at some deals. And up pops a box… would I like to talk to someone… with an option for Whatsapp! – how cool is that!!
So… if you haven’t got a website – then yes, you should have one – and provide instructions with how to contact you immediately!
So, your website is your business shop (you could call it that). People come there for information, understand and maybe order something. In addition to the shop – what else do you have physically? – because we can turn that into Digital!
Now – your website should be the front door to your business shop. If they want to browse products – then in my opinion you have options here and the best way to showcase these would be via social media rather than on your website.
Instagram. Product Photos. We’ll talk more about social media in future posts but if you aren’t on Insta, you’re missing out big time…
So in summary…. it’s a big NO NO to emails. It’s a big YES YES to having a simple website, instant messaging and getting onto social media to showcase your products!
Now… I appreciate, many folk will be doing this – but you’d be surprised, how many are not. In future blogs, I’ll talk about digital signatures, online payments, and thinking of the digital capabilities that are available…. that can help you! (Yes… everything from AI to robotics).
