Responsibility for Backing Our Definite Decisions

That decision I made in early March 2020 to step away from the security of a supplemental W2 role so we could put our complete focus on the opportunities that were showing up on a weekly basis was a big one. Sticking with that decision when it came time to live it out at the end of May was a taller order, especially since what had been touted as “two weeks to flatten the curve” had since stretched to two months and restrictions were only getting tighter. Providing virtual sessions for clients whose worlds were just as upside down as ours added to the adversities we were working through, before we ever had the chance to host our annual full-day event for just 40 people - in the same room where we had squeezed in 225 just twelve months prior.

As we moved into the final months of the year, I knew we needed to find options for generating income but I didn’t want to take too many steps back from all we had been doing to build the foundation of our business around. While 2020 was anything but profitable, Cindy and I had developed a tremendous amount of resources that have served us and our clients ever since. Stepping back into a full time or part time role in safety and human resources would have pulled much of my focus away from that. Through that same time, though, I did provide limited safety and HR support to a couple of small businesses where we had close relationships with the owners and executive teams. That was all on an as-needed, 1099 basis. While the revenue was sparse, it was revenue - and we had very few other options for generating it anywhere else at that point.

I shared the idea that I had limited capacity to support a few more small businesses like that through our network of clients and with members of our Executive Leadership Elite Think Tank. That didn’t set the world on fire, but one led to another, then another, and that was enough to keep our lights on. As thankful as I still am for each of those opportunities, I can point to so many lessons I learned in the process. Most were decent experiences - considering how much I had grown to dislike the day-to-day work involved in recruiting, safety, and human resources compliance work by that time. There were a few, however, that showed me (yet again) just how important it is to have a strong values-alignment with each client we serve. If the work itself doesn’t have a direct tie to the purpose we’re working toward, the values match becomes a must-have. Without either, the disconnects are bound to be frequent - and likely significant.

Sticking with the decision I made back in March required more willingness to accept full responsibility than maybe any other thing I had done to that point in my career. The highs and lows we worked through, especially the lows, served as the seeds that would clarify that values and purpose are stronger than any temporary security. Getting through the final months of 2020 in business that was now our sole source of income, and was generating very little, was definitely a challenge we didn’t see coming. Consistency that we had always worked to model, coupled with all Cindy did (and continues to do) to help me maintain a pleasing personality, honed our delivery through the disruption. Before I share some of the amazing opportunities that came from that, I want you to pinpoint one area where you’re still relying on something that’s really a temporary solution. What can you do right away to move toward permanent alignment so you’re not in a spot where you’re wondering how to keep the lights on?