Year 2020: What are authors has to say!

 

We are approaching the end of this jinxed year , “2020” and there were so many things we experienced, learnt and implemented.

Among these few things, I bring the voice of our authors on what they think was their “Biggest lesson learnt and one change they want to see next year"

Let's hear from them:

Steve Salisbury:

Personally? Take time to go outside, walk, breathe, reflect and regenerate. Working full-time from home with little to no human interaction means you must find other ways to take time away from the office. Professionally? Stay the course with the fundamentals of your game. While we have had to adjust to some of the "How's," most of our "What's" remain the same. For 2021, I want to see greater focus on human leadership. Leaders must develop relationships with their employees now more than ever. Leaving them home with little to no contact is not healthy for them, or for your organization. As it appears we'll still be dealing with Covid-19 for awhile, this remains a crucial activity.

Tony Saldanha

 I think the biggest learning from this year is that every issue is also an opportunity. This has been a rough year personally and professionally for most people. Life and business is not what it used to be. In my case, I stopped traveling for keynote speaking and consulting. However, it has been a great opportunity to start new ventures. I have a founded a new organization to create global standards and certify companies on Global Business Services. And, I've taken the opportunity to start podcasting. I think the change going forward is the importance of not losing the lessons of agility that we learned in 2020. There's a real danger that we all "go back to normal". That would be a mistake. There is real value in "crisis-like collaboration", and in "agility in dealing with change". Let's make sure we keep the good lessons from 2020!

Ruth Pearce

The biggest lesson I have learned is that it really is OK to practice self-care and not to overcommit. I cannot help anyone else if I don't take care of myself. One change I want to see next year is that across the world we develop more respect - for each other, for the planet, for other creatures, for everything!

Carole Osterweil

The sense of Walking in Fog and the pressure 'to keep on walking - even though the way forward is far from clear' is even more prevalent than I had appreciated! I asked over 200 Project Professionals about their experiences. 84% said they are Walking in Fog at least half the time. Of these, 10% will admit it in an informal setting, 83% are not brave enough to do so in a formal setting, 7% had not admitted it to themselves. By keeping it secret, we are burdening ourselves unnecessarily. Your sponsors, stakeholders and team members are Walking in Fog too. Remember the story of The Emperor's New Clothes. It took one kid to say the Emperor was naked and reality prevailed. Liberate yourselves and your projects. When you are in fog - talk about it - in all settings.

Kavitha Gunasekaran

My biggest lessons: 1. Never waste a good crisis to learn the hardest yet most important lessons of life. 2. Getting the love and affection of family and being blessed with good health are the pillars of happiness. 3. An adversity nudges us to identify our true north and fulfill the purpose of our lives which is predominantly to make a difference to the lives of as many people as possible. One change that I would like to see next year would be healthier and happier people on this earth.

Ryan Gottfredson-

Uncertainty and complexity is only going to increase. To be able to navigate the increasing uncertainty and complexity, we need to develop vertically (as opposed to horizontally), which means that we need to elevate our mental development and maturity.

Nic Jain-

My heart goes out to all that were affected by the #Pandemic. Best we can do in honor of those that had to pay the price is to use the lessons learnt for those in our circle of influence to make it better. Make digital transformation grassroot – now even the most remote villagers know how to get on a zoom call , why not use this opportunity to enrich their lives going forward with educating on what they need to know in order to succeed right where they are.  Use #COVID19 as a stepping stone to take our planet to the next level. Picture is from last PMI event Jan, 2020 Philadelphia. Looking forward to the world getting to the new & better normal.