Resilience is the New Black
Resilience! It’s a word that holds so much power. A word that you typically associate with surviving a personal struggle or trauma. A word that makes you want to stand on top of a mountain in “superhero stance,” but what does resilience really mean? And how does resilience transfer into business?
The definition of resilience from Merriam-Webster is the capability of a strained body to recover its size and shape after deformation caused especially by compressive stress. Wow! Never has resilience had so much literal meaning than it does right now during this pandemic. I don’t know about you, but my body has certainly become strained and changed size and shape during shelter-in-place.
Resilience is also defined as an ability to recover from or adjust easily to misfortune or change. At Double Forte, we are creating space to adjust, recalibrate, and fine-tune our thinking in the face of uncertainty. Working and adapting through this pandemic, has inadvertently created new ways of thinking and servicing our clients, that we will carry with us forever.
3 Ways Resiliency Changed Our Thinking
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CONTENT INNOVATION IS KING
Securing media coverage during the pandemic is like trying to hit a home run with a tennis racket; impossible with the wrong equipment. We quickly discovered our tried-and-true ways would no longer get traction during these unprecedented times. Evergreen pitches quickly became insensitive, and pitches not tied to COVID were ignored. We had to get innovative and fast!
Pitching with purpose became a fine art. Before pitching, we had to come up with innovative ways to realign our pitch to the COVID world. We carefully communicated to our clients the importance of service and ingenuity. We devoted more time on strategy and creative approaches than to honing the perfect pitch. We brainstormed ways our clients could share their platforms and expertise for the greater good, without selling, in order to get more media traction. We set up satellite media tours, media alerts, webinars, paid and unpaid influencer campaigns, and put pen to paper exploring personal essays and bylines that were timely and relevant.
Developing our resilience helped us view this challenge as an opportunity.
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TIMING EMPATHY IS EVERYTHING
The driving force behind Double Forte’s success during the pandemic may come as a surprise… empathy! Empathy for each other and empathy for our clients. Clinical Psychologist Simon Baron-Cohen says, “Empathy is like a universal solvent. Any problem immersed in empathy becomes soluble.” Empathy has helped our resilience grow stronger than ever. Empathy has us checking in with co-workers we sense are overwhelmed. Empathy helps us recognize clients in distress and provide strength through words of affirmation and strategic solutions. As leaders, it is imperative to demonstrate empathy from the top down. In turn, it can improve our systems, productivity, and communication in ways that are personally linked to our clients’ needs.
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SELF TEAM-DISCOVERY
You’re probably thinking what is team-discovery? Think self-discovery but in a team setting. At Double Forte we have implemented weekly zoom meetups, to check-in, have a laugh, and get to know one another. What we didn’t realize was that we would learn so many fascinating things about our colleagues we never knew and strengths we never knew they had. Taking time to share our self-discoveries as a team has resulted in a thriving and engaged work environment.
Our resiliency has molded us together stronger than ever, in turn making us a more powerful force for our clients. Implementing these three resiliency tactics will leave you and your team stronger and equipped to face adversity in the future. Check out our April 29 post for more information on what to do now in your business as we flatten the curve.
–Catherine Bormann