The Constant You

Everything has changed. It seems that there is so much different than from even a week ago. Which is even much different than the week before that. A February ski trip that my family took? Might as well have been five years ago.

At least that’s the way it feels.

Social distancing has left us with the greatest work-from-home experiment in the history of modern times. Of course, our reason for doing so: slowing a shockingly contagious and lethal virus, merits the abundance of caution most people in the world are now taking. This now requires we do business relationships--actually almost ALL relationships--differently.

It feels like everything has changed. So what hasn’t?

In short: You.

You haven’t changed. As someone who makes a living by helping professionals discover, develop and use their greatest talents, I have been assuring people the talents and strengths that have made them successful to this point do not disappear with a quarantine. That talent, strength and ability are all still there.

It’s the evidence that leads me to remind you that you have what it takes.

You have what it takes to get through this.

You have what it takes recover.

You have what it takes to help people.

You have what it takes to make changes.

As an executive coach, one of my goals is to help professionals aim their strengths at accomplishing what is most important. In this unprecedented season, people who have honed and refined their talent and strength for their particular workplace may find those skills to be irrelevant in today’s quarantined environment. Take the person who is brilliant at the in-person presentation, at being able to get people in a room to compromise so everyone feels they've come to a win-win. Or maybe the manager that is a warm and powerful presence in her office through strong interpersonal relationships and the ability to quickly deliver clarity and guidance.

The talent and strength behind those skill-sets are still there. But the expression of that talent may need to be adjusted. The magnetic office leader who keeps people engaged and motivated through enthusiasm and genuine interest in others has to find a new way to be effective besides stopping by someone's desk for a 90 second chat. In short, it is a season to use your same talent to find new skills. Skills are merely an expression of talent.

Don’t take yourself for granted. You have what it takes. Your talent and greatest strengths are likely more versatile than you realize. This is a season to figure out how to aim who you are at a world that has changed in the blink of an eye.

So much has changed. But your greatest talent and strength have not.