Is it time to reinvent yourself?

We are living through unprecedented times. A lot of what was true in December 2019 may not be true anymore. Is it time for you to adapt to this new reality? Is it time for you to reinvent yourself?

Mark Johnson, Clayton Christensen and Henning Kagermann wrote an article in the Harvard Business Review back in 2008 that may be spot on for the times we are living in.

I am sure I don’t need to tell you that you need to have a customer value proposition. But did the customer’s values change in the last few months? Has your customer’s most important problem change since the pandemic changed the world?

I heard a story about a barber shop in Georgia that just reopened its doors. The customer’s number one need that the barber shop can fill has changed from “looking good” and socializing to simply staying safe. The barber shop owner had to do some reinvention. Instead of allowing people to walk in whenever they want to get a haircut, not he only allows two customers at a time. Instead of creating an atmosphere of “warm and friendly” he is now creating an atmosphere of clean and sterile. Unfortunately, that also means he has gone from 4 haircuts per hour to two haircuts per hour. But his customers appreciate the care and concern that he is investing in them.

What about you? If you’re in IT perhaps your customers are more worried about remote work and less focused on speed. If you are a lawyer perhaps your customers will be more worried about asset protection rather than family planning. How will you answer those needs? And what people, information and technology will be required to fill those needs?

Now is the time to do some mindful thinking about what your next step will be. Picking up the phone to your customers and asking them what their needs are and how you can fill them. They may not know yet, but they might. And, perhaps, it is time to reinvent yourself!

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