Calm in the middle of a paradigm shift
Volatility, uncertainty, complexity, and ambiguity (VUCA), are ever present in our world, both as business leaders and in our personal lives.
The rate of change experienced globally as a result of: advances in technology and science, alterations in political systems and structures, evolving domestic and international security environments, and in the economic and social spheres, is at an extraordinary level. We live in a disruptive world where changes to systems, processes, and mind-sets can happen quickly, which tend to generate conflicting feelings of excitement and awe, apprehension and fear.
The business world strives to assess and analyse the causes of disruption, so that it may develop tools and techniques that enable it to continue to perform and evolve despite the changes to its working environment. This appears to be a rational and reasoned approach; identify the problem, address it and move forward, but at what cost? Are you constantly fire-fighting, dealing with problems, and paddling to keep your head above water? What impact does it have on you? What impact does it have on your subordinates? Do you feel that you are driving forward or stagnating? Many of us will cope and perform despite these challenges, but how can you, your team, and your organisation flourish in spite of these challenges? It is our belief that a critical enabler of success in a VUCA environment is ‘Positive Leadership’. For the majority of people when they hear the term ‘positive leader’ the cynic within them kicks in. It generates images of leaders sitting behind desks, oblivious to the obvious problems of their teams and organisations, and all while the hit song to the Lego Movie, & ‘Everything is Awesome!’ or, depending on your age, ‘Always look on the bright side of life’ by Monty Python plays in the background. As a result, people tend to close their minds to this new concept, it principles, mechanisms and most importantly its benefits.
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