Ushering in a New Era of Leadership
In the beginning, it's the risk that separates leaders. Entrepreneurs bring ideas forward that carry immense risks, personal, financial; they are putting it all on the table to build something that makes them jump out of bed in the morning with no alarm. How does this entrepreneurial passion and vision translate into hiring teams that feel the same way?
Our interest is in removing the separation so that our entire staff is a leader in their own right; the team's risk becomes not succeeding. Significant risks make leaders attractive; they make people want to ask questions, find out their history, and ultimately work with them to achieve common goals. Not everyone has this risk in them, nor should they; there have been many times throughout my twenty-year journey as an entrepreneur where I questioned why. Spending time away from my family to build something I knew in my bones would make people equally excited.
Almost daily, I've had staff coming forward asking for predictions of what will happen and sharing feelings of deep uncertainty. I am left to wonder how to lead during this time? Investors are afraid, the staff is worried.
“we are on the verge of a new reality invented by people who see hope for humanity.”
Here's where the risk comes in; I have to be optimistic, see beyond the present into the coming years, and look out for our business well beyond the vaccine. For me, I think that we are on the precipice of the best decade of our lives. With the focus on climate change, equal rights, fighting systemic racism, LGBTQ2+ rights, and every social justice movement involved, we are on the verge of a new reality invented by people who see hope for humanity.
The optimistic view of the future I hold blends into our leadership strategies as we look for new ways of creating a better work environment where people feel safer than ever before and where their mental and physical safety is the utmost priority. People will always remember how we make them feel.
“The pandemic has caused leaders to step up in ways no one could have imagined.”
The pandemic has caused leaders to step up in ways no one could have imagined. When the lines between business and family are more blurred than ever, leaders are being called to take the role of friend, support system, and integrating aspects of our employees' lives into the workplace; that we never thought we would.
After nearly nine months of this, the positive changes we've seen by doing so have been invaluable. By slowing down and getting to know every team member, what makes them tick, who their home team is, and their goals have changed the way we do business. We have created a team of leaders.
“We have created a team of leaders.”
I think these themes are all tied to the centralized idea of "The Great Reset." We spent a lot of time before chasing the dream, saying 'yes' when it should have been a hard 'no.' When I think about our business's vision, I now have time to align with it. No more chasing the shiny; focusing on the dull aspects and making them shiny is how we will move forward through this changing season of our lives.
So, let's support and build the next leaders; there's always room for more points of view and time to slow down.
Afshin Devani
President, RNDSQR
Newsletter
READ MORE ↓