The Hope of a New Phase

I have spent hours on calls hearing from leaders who are optimistic. Cautious. Desperate. On the brink. They have run the entire gamut. I’ve heard stories of deep resolution to never quit and have heard others who feel shutdowns and layoffs could be the wisest path as they strive to save their life’s work.

In the midst of this, I’m doing a lot of thinking and note-taking about the Second Phase. We are now in the acute First Phase. Where the shock and urgent needs, the nagging worry, are ever present. The Second Phase I see as the re-imagining and reinventing phase. Where we begin to dream about the future. Where new ideas take shape. Where collaboration pays off. This is where the entrepreneur, the ideator, the innovator finds their footing.

The Third Phase is the rebuilding, starting up, instituting the ideas we have imagined. I don’t know how long each phase will last. But I’m here for them all and believe I can help. That there is joy and accomplishment waiting in each. I’m imagining all of my friends and colleagues — relationships that have been cultivated over decades of rolling up our sleeves together. My dear friends who were made for such a time as this. I’m looking forward to working alongside of you. Let’s lean into the next Phase. We can do this.