Our world has been turned upside down in a matter of months and we are forced to respond to crisis situations, manage massive cancellations (with tact) and dust-off our risk management plans. This is while working without any of the physical, human connection that we are used to. We must take a good look at how we can thrive in this new space and grow beyond what we thought was possible.
Event professionals are being asked to use their resilience, creativity and out-of-the-box thinking to come out on top. And we, as an industry, have been forced to find any semblance of a silver lining in all of this — a task that is not easy, yet still is attainable.
For me, finding perspective and silver linings has been never been more important. Like so many others, my employment was affected by the current state of our world. At first, I felt like a massive storm hit, one that spun me around so fast that I had no idea where I would end up once the dust settled. It was a true “gutted” feeling — losing something you know so well and have a huge passion for. How could this happen to me? And, how could this happen in such a short period of time? These were the questions I asked myself until one important strategy came to mind – perspective!
Perspective is a particular attitude toward something; a point of view. We all have the ability to choose how we look at a situation and what we take from it. We must move past the fear, anxiety and uncertainty and embrace the opportunities that will come out of all of this change. I believe a huge tool we all have in our back pocket, is leaning on the insights, point-of-views, and experiences of others to help us consider an alternative perspective.
Perspective has allowed me to stay positive towards new opportunities and focus on building my skills and experience to rock my next role. At times when the reality of our world state and industry comes to mind, I use this strategy to gear myself towards what I can control. This is all we can do, why bother trying to control something you cannot? It only causes more pain and suffering and gets you nowhere.
Remember the old saying “this too shall pass”? I genuinely believe it will and what will come from it is a beaming ray of sunshine and brightness shining down and elevating our industry like never before!
Originally published on LinkedIn.
