How do we make the most of this time, the time when we are forced to work from home, the time when we’re facing unexpected unemployment, the time when we are unable to get out for anything but the essentials? It’s a choice we all get to make!

Similar to planning for your spring garden back in the fall, now is a really important time to plan for when the “doors reopen” and the world gets back to a more typical pace; maybe not the one we all became accustomed to, but a new pace that will open up new opportunities.

I attended a webinar yesterday offered by the Harvard Business School Association of Boston focused on What your Brand Must Do During the Time of Covid-19. What resonated most for me was the focus on making a plan and showing up in a meaningful/purposeful way.

Making a plan and showing up in a meaningful/purposeful way applies to everyone, including those still working, those whose businesses have been put on hold because they have been forced to close such as retailers and restaurants, those looking for a new job, and people who are more or less in the start up phase of their business.

How might this look? I’m coaching an actively employed leader who is considering what’s next for her. She is not sure if that is a new role at her current place of employment, or an opportunity in another company. She was convinced that since hiring and promotions have mostly slowed down, she should stop considering this for now. But the reality is that now is an opportunistic time for her to make a plan so that she is prepared when the tides change. Perhaps her plan could look something like this:

• Focus on her current role, showing up in a meaningful way offering true value to her organization to reduce her risk of being laid off if her company is considering a layoff and to set herself up for success when things start to improve
• Spend time connecting with her purpose – what’s really meaningful to her, and evaluate if her present company enables her to truly tap into that, or will she decide to find a different type of company to work for, possibly in a different type of role, in order to be able to fully tap into her authentic purpose
• Identify the types of company she would like to work for and the types of roles that would be the right fit
• Prepare her resume so that when new roles do become available, whether internally or externally, she will be ready
• Strengthen her elevator pitch – once being fully aware of her purpose and type of role that might allow her to fully tap into her strengths and her purpose, so she is ready to engage in those important networking opportunities
•  Build relationships – network with both internal and external stakeholders so when the opportunities arise, people will be more likely to have her top of mind to reach out to or to refer her.

Or, if you run a business that has either had to close down because you are deemed “non-essential”, or you have a business that simply will need to innovate to stay relevant, now is the time to plan AND to show up in a meaningful way. Think of what you can do to help those in need during this time – and do it! And, spend time planning how you can manage the current risk, plan for the future, and be ready to launch something new and innovative to be relevant!

If you would be interested in working with a thought partner to explore what’s most meaningful to you, and/or someone to explore ways to plan and innovate, please reach out to me. I would be honored to be of help. Wishing all my readers good health and forward action.