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If I had to sum up potential in a single photo, it’d be this photo of my beautiful granddaughter at her college graduation. Watching her walk across the stage to accept her diploma, I was struck by the realization of all she (and her fellow graduates) have overcome: COVID, virtual learning, unprecedented uncertainty, etc. Suddenly, I realized the value of a positive perspective. What if we all made the conscious decision to focus on the upside, rather than worrying about what could go wrong?
Risk is unavoidable. But if you’re getting bogged down in the scary weeds of what could go wrong, you’re missing out on opportunities. Sure, you might fail, but failure is a part of success and should not be feared. Experience, testing alternatives, and finding effective solutions include failure as part of the process.
“Upside probability” is business speak for seeing opportunities instead of problems. Not convinced of the value of this? Just look at billionaires like Gates, Bezos, Musk, and Zuckerberg for evidence!
Seven Steps to Realized Potential
- Build a Positive Culture: Creating a positive culture is as easy as saying “thank you” and praising employees for a job well done. Wondering if you’re building the right kind of culture? Ask yourself a simple question: would I talk to my family the way I talk to my employees?
- Inspire Confidence Every Step of the Way: Creating an environment where people believe they can succeed is the key to effectiveness. The biggest opportunities for increasing confidence frequently lie in reducing the factors that inhibit it.
- Embrace Technology and Change: While new technologies like A.I and electric cars may experience a few bumps in the road, their potential is both assured and unlimited. Successful innovators embrace new technology, quickly get themselves up to speed, and put these new tools to use for their business.
The WNBA is having to adapt to entirely new popularity, compensation equity, stars, quality of play and attendance all at the same time. This requires numerous adjustments such as how to treat emerging rookies, private instead of commercial travel, larger stadiums, and better communication to effectively manage the increased attention.
- Stop Thinking of Planning as a Dirty Word: Whether we’re looking at business trends to guide decision making or checking the weather so we don’t get stuck in the rain, planning is often the difference between success and failure. AI makes it so planning has never been easier but it’s our job to plan effectively – and that requires prioritization. Prioritize the things you’re good at over the areas where you struggle. Identify and compare alternatives to identify new approaches and add insight to the existing ones. Review and modify plans on a regular basis.
- Understand Parameters, Improve Strategies: Adaptability is key. The world changes fast, and so should your strategy. Regularly review parameters like population, economy, and social values. Staying updated on the latest variables is often the game changer. Make a decision and then embrace the Nike mentality and JUST DO IT! Not making a decision is a decision in itself.
- Create a Culture of Opportunity: Encourage out-of-the-box thinking and ideas and avoid normal day-to-day problem solving. Invite people to test new ideas and scrap the ones that don’t work. Recognize that you will make mistakes and focus on solving them rather than blaming someone.
For example, the population is aging which is creating numerous opportunities and challenges. On the one hand, the population is growing at a slower rate and we will need immigration of workers to maintain economic growth. On the other, we will require numerous growths in certain services like health care, retirement homes, and leisure activities for retired workers.
- Collaborate to Win: Collaboration is a proven winning strategy that needs more attention. Quite simply, it provides more alternatives, more analysis, greater satisfaction, and more innovation than working in an isolated silo. Despite these seemingly obvious advantages, collaboration is often overlooked. Too frequently, we pursue simplistic solutions without fully understanding the complexity of the problem.
In summary, let’s all commit to letting new grads relax and explore instead of tormenting them about responsibilities. Lastly, two great quotes to kick off your journey into embracing potential.
“Some people see things as they are and say why? I dream things that never were and say, why not?” – George Bernard Shaw
“What would you do if you weren’t afraid?” – Sheryl Sandberg, addressing the self-doubt that still holds many women back.
Related: 5 Strategies to Boost Focus