During the first Covid-19 lock down businesses were encouraged to “pivot”.
The term “pivot” has become a buzzword referring to a significant business change – ranging from mild to dramatic. A pivot is usually intended to help a business recover from a tough period, or survive after experiencing new competition or other factors that make the original business model unsustainable.
In other words, we pivot when forced to by adverse circumstances.
NZ’s election is on 17 October 2020 and few political parties are pivoting or putting fresh thinking on the table. Indeed, most political policies being trotted out seem downright stale. The calibre of political thinking and social/economic innovation seems substandard (with a few notable exceptions).
Covid, and NZ’s recession, is an extremely adverse circumstance for most of us. It also provides an opportunity to rethink our career / business model / political and economic strategies as well as how government approaches future infrastructure decisions. It’s time to review stale ideas and develop fresh and innovative thinking which can be executed decisively to set NZ up for the future.
If what has worked in the past doesn’t seem fit for purpose now, we need to face that head on and make some tough decisions.
There is no doubt that Covid has changed our acceptance of remote working and technology. Our view of commuting, leisure, travel, job loss, social justice, and life in general has evolved. It will be interesting to see the results of the two coming referendums.
What was fit for pre-Covid times is not necessarily suitable for the world as it is now, or will be in the future. The world has moved on, and our thinking must too.
From a personal and business perspective it Is timely to reboot. Clear the slate and consider how you can use your existing skills or business as a base to pivot to create a more exciting and sustainable future.