Navigating Uncertainty

The world changes. It always has. It always will.

The Black Plague completely devastate Asia and Europe, returning for decades after the original suffering.

Scribes were completely uprooted when the printing press came along and did the job of scribing with incomparable precision.

The iPod crushed Sony's Walkman division much faster than the Walkman took off in the early 80's.

And now... now the Coronavirus. Or COVID-19. Or 'Rona.

First and foremost, people are dying. I don't want to breeze by that like it's not happening. Someone's mom, dad, brother, sister, mom, dad, son, daughter, cousin, aunt... as I'm typing this right now, someone is passing on from this life to the next. And that's a big deal that I'm not going to ignore. The current state of fear and panic is crushing and it's new for much of the modern world. We haven't lived through a pandemic at this scale recently. So, while I'm not going to ignore the reality of the world, that is also not the focus of this post.

What I want to talk about is how we navigate uncertainty, specifically in business - and more specifically, in marketing. Here's what I know. I can in no way, shape or form predict the future. But we don't need to be able to predict the future to navigate today.

In every situation, no matter how dire, there is opportunity. We have the opportunity right now to rethink our business. Many of you are being forced to rethink your business because the government has put measures in place that directly affect your ability to run your business as usual. But all of us should be taking this time to rethink why we exist and what we can give to the world.

Let me be clear. STOP thinking about what you can sell, and start thinking about how you can help... how you can serve. We are trying to navigate a new normal and the best way to navigate anything new is to serve people well, often and without expectation of anything in return. That's what real service looks like. That's what real empathy looks like. That's what real world change looks like.

When you open your eyes tomorrow, I don't know what your dominant thought will be. Maybe it will be how to pay your mortgage, or your employees, or your electric bill. Maybe it will be how to buy food for your family or how to manage sitting at home for another day. I am begging you to take an hour out of your day and shift your focus. Spend an hour... 60 minutes... in thought about how you can serve others well.

Think about how to serve your spouse, your boss, your employees, your neighbors, your best customers, the customers that you fell short with. Think about all of them and figure out the ways that you can most give back to the world right now. It's going to be difficult, maybe even frustrating. But I promise you if you commit to serving others when times are most uncertain, you will find more certainty than you can imagine on the other side.

The world is secretly looking for those that care the most. Give the world what it's looking for.