โ๐๐ฆโ๐ท๐ฆ ๐ค๐ฐ๐ฎ๐ฆ ๐ง๐ถ๐ญ๐ญ ๐ค๐ช๐ณ๐ค๐ญ๐ฆ, ๐ฃ๐ถ๐ต ๐ค๐ฐ๐ฏ๐ฅ๐ช๐ต๐ช๐ฐ๐ฏ๐ด ๐ฉ๐ข๐ท๐ฆ ๐ค๐ฉ๐ข๐ฏ๐จ๐ฆ๐ฅโ โ Bob Peterson
Most people have experienced the phenomenon: fashions, however awful, do come round again; however โout thereโ new music seems to get, popular music tastes still come back; political priorities are driven by cyclical societal trends. How many of you even during the height of COVID felt deep down that this will right itself, because things always come full circle? Even Mufasa has got in on the act.
Humans are surrounded by a cyclical environment, with biological rhythms, natural cycles (seasons, lunar phases, etc.) and our means of learning โ we repeat behaviours that have led to good outcomes before. Our psychology is affected by โrecency biasโ which makes us more likely to repeat recent behaviours. Economic cycles are well-documented, and there is even generational theory that suggests societal behaviour and attitudes cycle every four generations.
All this is exacerbated by societyโs tendency to swing from one extreme to the other in a cycle of reaction and counter-reaction.
All these cycles, and knowing that they do and will come round, can have the effect of creating indifference and apathy. And apathy is not the friend of the business world.
By example, and as a general, sweeping statement, it is a fairly common view at present that customer service is pretty poor. It has been accepted for a while as being an inevitable consequence of lockdowns and the โGreat Resignationโ. However, humans will only tolerate this for so long, and it does feel like the tide is now beginning to turn.
How do you spot apathy in your business? Employees will become more uninterested, less productive and absenteeism is likely to increase while morale suffers. Customers will buy less, engage less with marketing and feedback, and customer churn will increase markedly.
So, what to do as a business leader? Be self-aware. Acutely so. Businesses should monitor for these signs of apathy and take proactive steps to address it.
๐๐ผ๐บ๐บ๐๐ป๐ถ๐ฐ๐ฎ๐๐ฒ. Open a dialogue to understand the needs and concerns. Making yourself available will be a big part of the solution.
๐๐๐ฆ๐ง๐๐ก. Really listen. Understand what is causing apathy, and listen to how you can address them.
This will ensure that employees and customers ๐ณ๐ฒ๐ฒ๐น ๐๐ฎ๐น๐๐ฒ๐ฑ โ another critical psychology.
Be present โ listen โ make them feel valued. Easy to write down, but can you make it happen?
โ๐๐ฉ๐ฆ๐ฏ ๐ญ๐ช๐ง๐ฆ ๐ฃ๐ณ๐ช๐ฏ๐จ๐ด ๐บ๐ฐ๐ถ ๐ง๐ถ๐ญ๐ญ ๐ค๐ช๐ณ๐ค๐ญ๐ฆ, ๐ฑ๐ข๐บ ๐ข๐ต๐ต๐ฆ๐ฏ๐ต๐ช๐ฐ๐ฏ. ๐๐ฉ๐ฆ๐ณ๐ฆ'๐ด ๐ข ๐ญ๐ฆ๐ด๐ด๐ฐ๐ฏ ๐ต๐ฉ๐ฆ๐ณ๐ฆ.โ
โ Mandy Hale
I try to meet with, virtually or in person, lots of my business and coaching contacts, and I find this an effective way of keeping up to date with the latest relevant issues. It also helps to ‘ground’ me and encourage me to check in with my own work and approach. Along the way I have lots of discussions about leadership which inevitably entails wildly differing views and opinions.
Out of the proliferation of remote work during and after COVID, a new challenge for organisations has emerged: many important skills are not easily, or cannot be, nurtured through screens. In the traditional office environment, the subtle yet powerful process of learning osmotically plays a critical role. Leaders model behaviours, and employees, often subconsciously, absorb crucial skills such as adaptability, emotional intelligence, and intuitive decision-making. Even resilience can be enhanced through witnessing other people’s coping mechanisms.
Reflecting on what I feel makes a leader truly great, I realise that leadership is generally misunderstood. It should not be about rank or authority;