How Will You Survive the Winds of Change?

“It is not the strongest of the species that survive, nor the most intelligent, but the one most responsive to change.” - Charles Darwin

We are in the midst of a major global shift and transformation in the world right now. Look around you. It is happening in our government, our economy, and corporate America. There is no question in my mind that what is going in the world today is definitely a “Wake up, Alice” moment. We have been unconscious and asleep at the wheel for far too long.

We can choose to look at this shift with doom and gloom, resignation, and resentment, or we can look at this as a Course Correction and a blessing in disguise. I choose the latter.

The quality of our lives and the future of our businesses will be determined by how seriously we take this Wake Up call and how willing we are to respond to the changes necessary in order to get back on track. It is time to get back to basics. It’s time to get back to values – our core values.

The old way of doing business will no longer work. The shift that is upon us will require us to adapt new strategies and a different mindset than the one we’ve been using. It’s time for us to raise our consciousness, awareness, and take responsibility for what we want in our lives.
This is a letter that I wrote to a Merrill Lynch VP in 2003 that I thought I’d share with you today. It appears I was ahead of my time because everything I said 5 years ago is even more appropriate for today’s economic climate than it was back then. Here it is:
“As you know, the bottom line has always been “How much did we make?” Given the recent corporate scandals of the past year, the old way of doing business is obviously not working.

The new model of doing business is going to require the development of a new set of skills; skills that will promote long term results that can stand up to an accountant’s scrutiny as well as stockholder’s questions. This process will require support and education from the Top down.

Coaching support with Success Source is the kind of support and education that can peel back the layers of resentment and resignation and transform a company’s business into a co-creative partnership environment that promotes mutual trust, enthusiasm, accountability, commitment, and a shared sense of purpose. In a word, INTEGRITY.

The education and support you receive with Success Source benefits business owners, executives, and managers, as well as groups/teams looking to improve their bottom line and a sense of direction for their company.

Are you ready for the new challenges of leadership? If not, what is it going to take for you to get there?”

Pretty scary, huh? The old adage of “Know Thyself” is more important now than it’s ever been. The more you know yourself, the less likely you are to be subjected to the whims and wishes of others.

Here are a few of the strategies and mindset changes we’re going to need to implement if we want to keep going in the right direction:

• Authenticity
• Integrity with yourself and others
• Be open and willing to change
• Determine what’s working and not working in your life and your business
• Use your core values to guide you when making decisions
• Accountability - to yourself and others
• Commitment
• Be solution oriented
• Take action
• Believe in yourself and become a conscious entrepreneur

I firmly believe this correction in direction we are experiencing is truly a blessing. We can choose to live our lives mired in mediocrity or we can choose to live a life that is filled with possibilities, ambition, abundance, love, gratitude, and peace.

It’s your choice. What will yours be?