What leaders do when there's no correct answer
Stop acting like experts and start acting like investigators.
Don't profess to "have" the answers. Instead, go on the hunt for them. Stop trying to hand out certainties and start asking great questions.
For instance: What are your employees dealing with at home, and how might that affect work? Some are scared to say, some haven't thought about it but should, and some might be able to lend a hand to help the business weather the storm.
Bill is home with 2 kids under 4, no daycare through June, and his spouse has a full-time job too. He's at 50% capacity & already mentally drained.
Samantha has elderly parents. She's shopping (and stressing) for 3.
Max is actually enjoying working from home and is quite productive, if bored. What might you and Max do to act like partners in this situation & support Bill and Samantha?
Aiming for "business as usual" can feel like a welcome respite, but these are NOT usual times. Leaders need to sleuth out what's happening with their people, then set expectations with them AND customers/clients, investors, and other stakeholders.
Stop acting like experts. Start acting like investigators.
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PS: Four things on offer during this tough time:
1) The 1-Star Club — free for makers and marketers facing adversity. This is a weekly Instagram Live I’m hosting, with a set format and special guests, to help push and inspire us to move forward and keep making, together.
>> Follow @jacunzo and watch for the live call every Tuesday at 1:30pm Eastern. More details here.
2) Break the Wheel is temporarily on sale on Amazon. For orders of 10+, I’ll do a live call with you and your team. Share receipts to secure a spot. The book is unexpectedly relevant for this time: How do we find clarity and make better choices when surrounded by feelings of overwhelm? When the “best practices” won’t cut it, thanks to the variables of your unique situation, what do we do then?
>> Find the book here.
3) Marketing strategy advisory, which I’m able to offer since my travel has stopped. If you can use a confidant and some ideas and frameworks, I’d like to help you in a bespoke way. The focus will be helping you evolve from brand awareness to brand affinity as a focus, from reach-based marketing to resonance-based initiatives, both to weather this storm and to thrive once the sky clears.
>> Email jay@unthinkablemedia.com. Limited availability.
4) For speakers and event organizers, I’ve repackaged my experience developing narrative-style podcasts and docuseries into a repeatable formula for enhancing keynote speeches for the virtual event environment. You can read about my philosophy here. This service is a combination of brief consulting and post-production to turn your talk into an experience virtual audiences love.
>> Email my business partner Josh White, speaking@unthinkablemedia.com, to discuss.