Well, I don't know what you think, but for me, the year 2021 has been easier than the year before.
No, the pandemic has not disappeared, as we were hoping for at the end of last year during some moments of naivety. However, we have learned, at least to some extent, to cope with the pandemic. Having vaccines ready for us helped a lot. For my part at least, it felt like a great relief when I finally got my first shot. It meant that I was no longer fully exposed to the threat of getting infected, which greatly eased my concerns. Self-administered tests as well as rapid lateral flow tests reassured me that when my entire family takes COVID-19 tests, the grandparents are protected at a level of 90% at family gatherings and that our visit does not turn out to be a ticking time bomb. We, as a society, have regained some of our freedom, thanks to the medical industry and research.
However, none of us exactly knows what lies ahead. I am working on maintaining my confidence that there is also something good lying ahead of us.
In that context, I was encouraged by an article entitled “Cheer up!” by Christina Berndt, which was published in the German daily Süddeutsche Zeitung last weekend. In this article, she provides us with some good advice how to actively increase your own resilience in this second pandemic winter. Among other things, she recommends to accept what cannot be changed or to change your own assessment or perspective. This means, for example, to also realize the good that is happening because not everything is bad. I think of the fact that we don't seem to have a vaccine shortage here in Germany at the moment, so anyone who wants to can get boosted, or vaccinated for the first time. Neither do we have any nighttime curfews, and there's no need to feel guilty about wandering around empty streets and country lanes in the dark, alone or with your partner. I could keep on adding things to the list of things that have become better than last year...
To increase my resilience and strengthen my confidence mentioned above, I am having a creative hiatus for starters. To me, having such a break means doing nothing, spending some time with my family, and reading books. The year 2021 passed by so quickly that some of the books I purchased have remained on the book shelf. But now, I will find some time for
- Unsere Welt neu Denken (Rethinking our world) by Maja Göpel
- Zukunft Republik – 80 Vorausdenker:innen springen in das Jahr 2030 (The future republic – 80 innovators jump into the year 2030)
- Liebeserklärung an eine Partei, die es nicht gibt: Warum wir Politik radikal neu denken müssen (Love letter to a party that does not exist: Why we need to radically rethink politics) by Hanno Burmeister and Clemens Holtmann
Please do not take this as a recommended reading list because I have yet to read these books...
For 2022, I expect that I can keep on walking the road I’ve already taken. I am looking forward to
- accompanying more teams on their way to better, more efficient and more joyful collaboration;
- supporting managers and their teams to re-delegate responsibilities in order to make their organization or department able to better respond to frequent changes; and
- helping people through individual coachings to find solutions that are already inside of them.
Whoever wants to join me on this way might find my range of open seminars for 2022 interesting. To this end, I will continue the successful collaboration with my colleague Vanessa Giese and will moderate all of the listed webinars and seminars together with her:
- Tools for good teamwork – working together efficiently and with joy (4-hour webinar on Feb. 1, 2022)
- Team spirit and home office - formats, warm ups and methods for good relationships (3-hour webinar on Feb. 28, 2022)
- Fewer conflicts – better communication within the team and between teams (4-hour webinar on March 4, 2022)
- Masterfully facilitation of good meetings (4-hour webinar on April 29, 2022)
- Collegial leadership – ways to more personal responsibility for teams and employees (4-hour webinar on May 6, 2022)
And we will also dare to hold on-site seminars:
- Women in leadership – being authentic and successful as a female leader (2-day seminar on June 21/22, 2022 near Frankfurt)
- Leading with confidence in dynamic contexts (2-day seminar on Sept. 20/21, 2022 in the German Ruhr region)
Registrations are already possible either via the above links or via mail to andrea.schmitt@innovationstrainerin.de.
I’d like to conclude this newsletter by wishing you and your families a peaceful Christmas and by giving you the strength to see the good...
This text first appeared in my newsletter 'Innovation on Wednesday'. It is published every other Wednesday. For subscription click here