Human Centred Change During Covid 19

I’ve been wanting to write a piece on human centred change for a while. It’s a super pertinent topic during COVID. Some of the biggest factors I’ve noted during the last year is the real stripping down of our privileges we often took for granted:

Using the model of Maslow’s hierarchy of needs, we’ve really been stripped down, some of us going from the top of the pyramid around self actualization to reviewing what we need at this time – most no more other than our basic and belonging; and love needs; others struggling with this have focused on safety needs.

For me the evening family zoom call, the closeness to my children shows the seismic shift in both perspective (where being the striving professional in the office, with a sporting persona and a like for after work socialising) is something I for one will be tempering upon some return to normality.

I’ve also noted a more humbling realisation that I’ve found myself & acknowledged both my limitations, strengths and weaknesses.

Switching from the practical I examples; now represents a poignant moment for contemplation by individuals, leaders & corporations on how to treat people & assess their long term needs; alongside the typical success metrics such as KPI’s, OKR’s & monetary gain.

So rather than give you more insight into how I perceive we can bridge the gap in this period & beyond (some great initiatives have already started such as all hands, yoga, mindfulness, employee assistance programmes all help – but scratch the surface) I implore us all at this point, to invest more heavily in ourselves to identify our drivers & values, being more cathartic before the new normal is defined.

If you go back to a new reality armed with an updated set of values and drivers & are happy to vocalise and stick by them, I’d say we’ve all evolved.

Thanks

Avneet

Learnings & Insights 15 years on

I turned 37 over the weekend and also completed the first 15 years of my working career. Here are a few learnings I’d like to share that I hope prove insightful for others:

1. Your career is a marathon not a sprint – you’ll find unexpected highs & lows; often at the most surprising times. Your path is not linear & nor should it be!

2. There will be defining moments; at which you’ll look back with nostalgia: for me to this day I remember the phone call whilst I was holidaying in Brighton ….. informing me I had been picked to join a grad programme; moving from retail into tech – which lead to so many opportunities.

3. It’s your career – don’t let anyone else define it for you. If you want to go after something do it with conviction, keep poking the bear, knock on multiple doors till someone answers. That being said know when to change tact or walk away. There are times you are better off redirecting your effort & often your gut instinct is the one to trust. Before you make the decision to switch balance your gut feel with objective assessment of the situation.

4. Put in the hard yards – no amount of table tennis, beer, or awesome culture can make certain tasks or roles fun. That being said you need to build both quality and quantity experience. One of my first roles in tech was driving across the UK to multiple warehouses to stick labels on over 400 printers for a consolidation audit. The week before Christmas I was asked to take every label off; as it lead to the engagement leader being called non stop, as warehouse employees mistook her number as a helpdesk. Still the experience was invaluable – I got the chance to observe warehouse & line operations first hand, I was able to interview senior managers through to operatives & build my soft skills early in my career.

5. As you gain more experience, you’ll take more for granted. You will have the privilege & right to charge more for both the quality and quantity of your experience, you’ll get the chance to lead – either through management or evangelism. Recognise your privilege & remain grateful it’ll help keep you grounded.

6. There will always be things you suck at – you have a few options here. Take work that plays to your strengths, be brave – actively taking on roles to develop where you are weak. Alternatively if you have the privilege to lead; build a team around you that is awesome where you are not. Success is the sum of its parts – & the most enjoyable moments I have had, have been we not I moments.

7. Tell stories, continue to learn & be frank about your failures. It’ll mean people respect you more; leaders are grown through a succession of experiences & lifelong learnings. Not all of them good or enjoyable. Still if you can master the art of telling a story; you will gain not just an audience but a following.

8. Don’t compromise on your personal principles. There will be situations where you will be presented with binary options, more money, a different role, an ethical dilemma, no matter what it is – stay true to yourself. It’s often hard to do this without introspecting, however you do not want to look back on your career or indeed at any part of your life with regret.

9. Make sure you are having fun, where the fun dries up move on. If that means you pivot to take a different job in your company, move to a different company, industry, start a business, do it. At the end of the day it’s about richness of your experience and what it means to you. Typically most professionals have three distinct cycles & types of roles in their careers. So far I’ve managed 1) retail & sales 2) process analysis 3) delivery & programme management alongside dabbling with a startup. Hoping to squeeze in at least 2 to 3 more alongside some awesome life experiences.

That’s it folks – I’m sure another 15 years will bring lots more insight & reflection. Please do feel free to comment & share your own experiences.

Avneet

Eradicate Coping, focus on happiness

Over the years I’ve prided myself with coping be it with a busy day job; alongside a demanding family life & my want to continue to play regular competitive sport. A lot derived from the definition of what success looks like on paper.

To enable my relentless appetite to be the 360 degree human; I built many coping mechanisms to push forwards including:

1. The walk to train station to kick off my day positively
2. Music to spark the brain cells
3. Reading to ground myself
4. Mental preparation for work
5. Coffee breaks
6. Structured learning
7. A stressful day wound down with a beer
8. Rushing to sport multiple times a week & winding down late at night
9. Using Saturday as the exhaustion buffer

Welcoming in 2020 and the changes couldn’t have been more pronounced. The me time replaced with – initially additional responsibilities including teaching, caring, & relentless amounts of work. Has led to recent introspection – why build coping mechanisms & sticking plasters? When I’ve haven’t really addressed the underlying factor.

Build in more happiness and less coping.

1. The me time whether that the train journey, reading, music; has been balanced with more we time for our young family – by no means is this perfect yet or structured but it’s a start
2. Out has gone the alcohol & in have come the fringe benefits of better concentration and processing of emotions
3. Sport is now an activity to enjoy where I am now more accepting of my limitations

My job although massively important; is no longer the defining factor in determining my self worth. It continues to push me to strive for excellence & not safety, but is not the end all.

For me 2020 has been massive opportunity to reset & it remains to see whether I can maintain the promises I’ve made. However the one thing that will certainly stick going forwards – is focusing on happiness, not coping.