Don't forget about the future

Dan Berger The world we're currently operating in makes it difficult to look past the end of the week. Our businesses have been disrupted by the coronavirus pandemic. New issues and concerns arise almost daily.

We've all had to make sacrifices – whether it's canceling an event, reducing hours, or closing up shop and hoping for a return. Right now, our main goal is just to make it through. But what happens when we get to the end of this? Will you be prepared for the future?

Leadership guru Dan Rockwell has some good insights from a recent conversation with strategic innovation consultant and author Mark Johnson, where the two discussed how "volatility makes long-term thinking more important."

The approach Johnson takes to execute on vision is using "future-back" thinking. This way of thinking is used to develop strategy, while "present-forward" thinking is used to execute. Here are a few examples of the differences between the two ways of thinking:

Present-forward

Future-back

What is

What could be

Sustaining

Transformative

Concrete, predictive

Ambiguous, abstract

Delivery/managerial

Discovery/entrepreneurial

Answers

Questions

Using these prompts will help frame your mind and way of thinking in a positive way. You'll focus on the reality of the current situation – rather than the uncertainty – and envision where you can go from here.

Here's how to use the future-back process:

Develop an inspiring vision that is fully actionable
Translate it into a clear strategy
Prepare for and manage its implementation

Developing your vision for the future during the coronavirus pandemic may seem impossible. Who's to say how long this will go on or what recovery will look like?

Throughout this pandemic, I've stressed the importance of staying committed to your mission, members/customers, employees, and stakeholders. If you prioritize what your members/customers need, you'll be in good shape. If you work to do right by your employees, they'll take care of you.

And Rockwell uses a good illustration to focus on what your members/customers need: "No one goes to the hardware store to buy a quarter-inch drill: you go to buy a quarter-inch hole." As you reflect on your products and services, keep in mind HOW they're used and WHY they're useful.

Although it may not seem like it right now, there are plenty of opportunities in front of you. Think about where you want to be in the future. I am confident we will reach the other side of the coronavirus pandemic stronger than we were before.

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