Every organization and corporation from small to large
scale invariably goes through a cycle of change over a period of time,
it is only natural. A cycle of birth, growth, maturity, decline and
eventually death, that is unless one is willing to embrace a new vision,
idea or paradigm and be ready to implement. This is where the business
must reinvent itself and adapt to change to stay alive and ahead.
Marketing
agencies know too well that markets can be unpredictable. The law of
supply and demand is never constant and has its ups and downs. When a
product or concept is going through a decline, in other words if sales
of Kit Kat chocolate or Persil Automatic washing powder seem to be
dropping, then that is the most crucial moment to inject new ideas into
these products in order to hold onto current customers and attract new
ones. Even if Kit Kat is only just a bit more
chunkier, or Persil Automatic now contains red flakes and not just blue,
this will be enough to keep consumers demanding the product! Failure to
introduce something new at this moment may see the death of the
product, together with a loss of the market share.
The
same change cycle is also applicable to
individuals. We may find ourselves in the same sort of job and position
for years, or even decades and although it provides security on the one
hand, on the other it can stump our growth as we become stuck in a rut.
This sort of scenario is not healthy for either the individual or the
company. This is a very definite sign that we need to reinvent ourselves
and change by choice before circumstances force us to change.
Change
cycles help us to understand that nothing ever stays the same because
change really is the only constant. We can be hired and fired, promoted
and demoted within seconds! Praised today and defamed tomorrow.
If we remain rigid and unyielding then we will crack when situations
get tough. However, if we are willing to reflect inwards, be open to
ideas and different perspective and most importantly, be flexible and
fluid we may have a better chance of surviving the inevitability of
change and coming out stronger and wiser.
Have
you ever noticed how the cycles of time are gathering speed? Time is
moving so fast that we cannot really hold onto anything! Our days feel
shorter. The pace of the world in which
we live is getting faster and faster and our to do list gets longer and
longer. In our current age we have indeed become time
watchers hoping time does not run out and we either stagnate, a
metaphoric death as we struggle to survive, or we adapt. How can we
transition from being those who survive to those who excel in this new
world order of fast pace change on so many levels; economic, social,
environmental, political, technological and spiritual? From being time
watchers or even timekeepers to creators of time, those who embrace,
adopt and/or adapt to change?
The first lesson of who am i can help here, when we remember that we are a human
being vs. a human doing. With our
preoccupation with action we lose sight of our being-ness, the true wealth of our humanity. We begin to redefine success.
Take
moments every hour to just mentally step away from your present
reality, breath in, reflect on perspective, purpose and meaning and
experience yourself as a
being.
Secondly, if
we can make our work interesting by finding a deeper meaning and
purpose, then our whole attitude will change because we will WANT to go
to work and
not be caught in a rut of HAVING to work. Our work should be inspiring
and not a cause for our expiry! The way to ensure this is to focus on a
spiritual value or principle every day. In an atmosphere that is
competitive and hard- core, practicing these spiritual values and
principles will deepen our foundation, keep us anchored and help us
adapt while we maintain our self-respect.
Values
are deeply linked to our purpose. No matter how many cycles we go
through as a corporation, or how high the individual climbs the
corporate ladder our values and principles will always keep us in check
and balanced. Even if our external reality seems a storm of the worst
things we believe can happen to us such as being
fired from work or sales targets unmet, with these simple steps we know
our inner foundation of our values and principles will help us forge
ahead.
Its time¦ to reinvent yourself “ let
spiritual values and principles form the bedrock of your life and let
work remain an inspiration and not a cause for your expiration! And most importantly,
dont forget to add to BE onto your to-do list!
Regards
Ankush Shilimkar
No comments:
Post a Comment