Radically Reimagine, Recreate, Repurpose, Reignite the Future through the Joys of Leadership

The only constant in life is change. Even before the world was forced to change the way we live, work and learn due to the pandemic, we were living in a time of more change than humanity has ever seen.

Just think about how much the world has changed since the internet age began. It has already changed everything, and we’ve only just started to scratch the surface of possibilities.

So, where it once might have been acceptable to settle for the status quo and just keep doing things the way they’ve always been done, those days are over. This also means that one of the most critical responsibilities of leadership is to reimagine their business and their vision, repurpose, repackage and recreate their products and services, and reignite passion and performance in their team.

Let’s look at some of the ways the world is changing and how you can make that change part of your leadership strategy.

The Workplace Will Never Be the Same

You’ve probably read the news reports about captains of industry and business leaders pining for a return to in-office workforces. Even though all the evidence points to maintained or improved productivity by work from home employees, they’re clinging to old notions that they have to watch their people all day to ensure things get done.

Performance is not based on geography, though, and leaders who choose to reimagine the way their people work are likely to be the big winners.

Not only are there more people than ever looking for remote work opportunities, which means your hiring pool is exponentially larger than for an office-based job, but remote work also opens the door to global teams. Imagine what you could achieve if you could hire the best people from anywhere. Inclusion starts at home, but it can also mean creating a global team of professionals and specialists.

We need to stop measuring employee worth by the number of hours they are in their seat and start focusing on their performance and the results they achieve. Value is not defined by putting in more hours. It is almost entirely related to work product.

Competition Is Fiercer Than Ever

Another huge leadership challenge right now is the issue of competition and, even more specifically, disruptive competition.

When you consider your competition these days, it’s not only the people who do the same things you do in the same way that you need to be concerned about. You also need to pay attention to disruptive entrepreneurs who are creating new ways to get things done.

Sometimes, you might even want to fight fire with fire by becoming the disruptor yourself. Challenge yourself to reignite your passion for your industry and reimagine how you provide your products and services to your customers.

Recognizing Looming Obsolescence

For a long time, change was incremental. Small improvements happened over a long time, but everything stayed mostly the same. However, even when change happens slowly, it does happen, and often, the result is that an industry that once thrived became obsolete.

One example would be whaling. For a long time, whaling ships and the whale oil industry were active around the world. Whale oil was in high demand, and whalers became rich almost overnight. Today, whaling is almost entirely gone, and even those that do still ply this trade are seen as eco pariahs.

We’re already seeing the start of the same thing in the fossil fuel industry, which has been a dominant economic force for decades. Even though there is still demand for fossil fuels, we know that it’s fast becoming a sunset industry.

What’s interesting about watching the fossil fuel industry stare down obsolescence is that we are also seeing companies pivot in real-time. Major oil companies are now at the forefront of sustainable energy research and production. Leading car companies are scrapping gas guzzlers and introducing electric cars and hybrids.

One of the priorities for leadership teams is to recognize when a change in demand is leading to obsolescence and looking for opportunities to recreate their companies, repurpose their technology and reimagine their industry.

Collaborative Teams

If you look back at how companies used to work, there was someone at the top, usually surrounded by a small team of close associates, who made all the decisions and set all the rules.

Companies neither cared nor asked for their employee’s opinions. Thinking outside of the box was not considered an asset, and employees who toed the line and didn’t rock the boat tended to be the ones who succeeded long term.

You can pretty much turn all of that upside down when it comes to leadership today.

The most successful leaders seek out input from employees at every level. Diversity and inclusion extend not only to people of different races and genders but also to employees who might not have traditional qualifications. Creativity and innovation are embraced and used to reimagine products, services, processes and performance alike.

Modern leadership isn’t about making the rules and enforcing them. It’s about creating a framework that teams can use to recreate something new. It’s about building a culture that prizes imaginative thought and that is willing to try new things, even when they’re very different from the way you’ve always done things.

Instead of simply paying lip service to having an “open door policy,” today’s leaders are genuinely accessible to their people and ready to listen to feedback and ideas.

Keeping An Open Mind

Perhaps the most important asset anyone in a modern leadership role can have is an open mind.

Preconceived notions about how things should be done, or worse, how you want them done to the exclusion of any other possibility stifles growth and hamstrings companies.

Today’s leadership needs to be open to possibilities. They need to be able to admit when something isn’t working and be willing to try something new. They need to accept constructive criticism, no matter where it comes from, and seek out feedback from employees and customers alike.

The age of “because I said so” leadership is over. Today’s leaders need to listen more than they speak if they want to succeed.

An Exciting Transformation

Some people in leadership positions are digging in their heels when it comes to embracing change, even when all signs indicate that they are fighting a losing battle.

The companies that will succeed in spite of all the turbulence we’re experiencing right now are those that choose to embrace change and transformation rather than trying to prevent it.

The world is a very different place from what it was ten or twenty years ago, and it’s likely to continue changing at an ever-increasing rate. It’s time to stop trying to swim against the tide and instead to conserve energy, relax, and float on the surface.

Change isn’t bad. Transformation doesn’t have to be painful. All you have to do is be ready to reframe your views, reignite your passion for creating something new and exciting in your industry, and embrace the diversity and inclusion that modern work culture demands.

Those leaders who recognize that change is inevitable and who focus on working with it will inevitably rise to the top. Make sure you’re one of them.

Dr. Terry Jackson is Executive Advisor, Thought Leader Marshall Goldsmith 100 Coach, Top 10 Global Mentor, and Thinkers50 Top 50 Global Coach Transformation Coach. Dr. Jackson partners with Executives and Organizations to align Strategy, People and Processes to transform and sustain Peak Business Performance.