Disruption and change are everywhere, and you may be thinking that the old rules of business no longer apply. On top of that, the news media and at least one – and probably all – of the free virtual conferences you have attended over the past few months have fueled a growing fear that the sky is falling. Their advice may have been that you must pivot, throw everything out, and start over or risk becoming obsolete.
Yes, the world in which you compete has changed … a lot. That doesn’t necessarily mean, however, that you have to reinvent everything. And it sure doesn’t mean that you have to pivot 180 degrees from where you are today.
As you think about your organization’s future, it is important to distinguish between those that were successful going into the pandemic and those that were already on life-support. If your company was struggling before the COVID-19 crisis, your most likely are even worse off today. You first responsibility in that situation is to stop the bleeding and begin a complete business model and organizational overhaul.
For everyone else, it is crucial to recognize what has and hasn’t changed. Online video providers made Blockbuster obsolete, but they didn’t change everything. They only changed the thing that mattered most to customers – ease of use.
It is the same for your industry and business. Someone will focus on and innovate around points of distinction where they can be faster, better, cheaper, and/or friendlier. In other areas, they will do things basically the same as, and not necessarily better than, you.
In other words, you don’t need to reinvent everything. You only need to reinvent the areas that allow you to remain relevant and competitive.
Likewise, you don’t have to unlearn everything that worked in the past either. In fact, you probably shouldn’t even if you could.
George Santayana wrote that “When experience is not retained, infancy is perpetual.”
Unlearning, in its literal definition, stunts growth and is potentially dangerous. True unlearning runs the risk that you will lose something that is important simply to acquire knowledge or perspective that you don’t currently possess.
Instead of unlearning, think of it as discarding. You must discard the beliefs, actions, and habits that prevent you from flourishing in the future.
Here is the question we all must answer – what must we discard and change today to be successful in a future full of uncertainty and upheaval?
Remember, the heroes in every marketplace are known by their results. Delivering the results you and your customers need in a changing marketplace is impossible unless you are willing to discard what won’t serve you well in the future.
