We each hold the key to navigating the “new new-normal”.
Become Resilient…more than words of encouragement.
Resilience is like a 3-legged stool; it is inherently stable on any surface because three points always define a plane. That means it will always sit firmly without rocking, even on uneven ground or in a stressed context, making it ideal for rough terrain.
A 4-legged stool needs a flat surface to be stable; otherwise, it wobbles because one leg is usually off the ground. To be stable, it requires precise leg lengths on an even surface.
By analogy, a 3-legged stool is resilient, whatever the context. Its 3-points define the plane on which it stands; the surface of the plane does not define the stool’s stability. The 3-legged stool is resilient because it has the built-in capacity to be resilient. It can handle any dysfunction by accommodating the situation. A 4-legged stool, by contrast, needs an even plane to remain stable; that plane defines the stability of the 4-legged stool.
As we enter the divisive stage of the “new new-normal”, energized by doomscrolling, edgelords, geo-political and economic instability, our capacity to handle any dysfunction and be resilient needs to build on a 3-leg dynamic:
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There is the Strategy Leg: The overarching direction for achieving success in personal, career, and business contexts, answering the questions:
- Where do we need to go [not just where do we want to go]?
- Why do we need to go there [why is this important]?
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There is the Process Leg: The patterns, workflows, systems, and procedures that guide daily activities in personal, career, and business contexts, answering the questions:
- How do we get to where we need to go?
- What do we need to do in order to get there?
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There is the People Leg: The social and human capital, the personal and collective talent, in society and in the workforce that power success in personal, career, and business contexts, answering the questions:
- With whom do we engage [social capital]?
- How do we engage [interpersonal capital]?
- What skills do we need [personal capital]?
- Who is driving the bus [organizational capital]?
As a metaphor for stability and resilience, there are 3 legs that are the foundational pillars of personal leadership:
- There is the Psychological Safety Leg: the confidence to take interpersonal risks, speak up, or disagree openly without fear of punishment.
- There is the Growth Mindset Leg: the belief that abilities can be improved over time, seeing setbacks as opportunities rather than threats to perceived competence.
- There is the Accountability Leg: commitment to, and sense of ownership over, one’s responsibilities; a culture in which people know what’s expected, don’t need anyone holding them accountable, and opt to hold themselves accountable.
As a metaphor for personal leadership, there are 3 legs that are core to a balanced life:
- There is the Work Leg: providing a sense of purpose
- There is the Self Leg: nurturing self-confidence.
- There is the People Leg: providing a sense of belonging.
As a metaphor for a balanced life, there are 3 legs to how we know and learn
- There is the Theory Leg: we learn and know through research, seek evidence, apply logical reasoning, develop conceptual frameworks, that are structured, generalizable, transferable, and applicable to different situations and contexts.
- There is the Practice Leg: we learn and know from direct experience, involving reflection, intuition, trial and error, feedback, and changeable over time and across contexts.
- There is the Personal Leg: we learn and know through values, beliefs, emotions, experiences, relationships, influenced by our own perspective and identity.
As a metaphor for how we know and learn, there are 3 legs to sustainability:
- There is the Social Leg: our standard of living, our embrace of education, the value of our community experience [social capital], our pursuit of justice.
- There is the Economic Leg: our embrace of economic well-being, our focus on profit balanced by value, our commitment to corporate social responsibility, ethics, fair trade
- Environmental: our stewardship in and for the world, our focus on environmental management, our effective use natural resources and energy efficiencies
As a metaphor for sustainability, there are 3 legs to the work we manage and do:
- There is the Scope Leg: size, complexity, objectives: referring to the detailed set of deliverables, including all work necessary to complete them, outlining the requirements and responsibilities to ensure clear understanding and agreement among stakeholders.
- There is the Time Leg: akin to steering a ship through a maze of icebergs, requiring precision, foresight, and the ability to adjust course as needed, involving a work breakdown structure that identifies process tasks, milestones, and deadlines.
- There is the Cost Leg: the financial resources needed for the work to be done [internal, external, hardware, software, people], including capital and operational expenditures.
Without continual growth and progress, such words as improvement, achievement, and success have no meaning. Benjamin Franklin.
Victor Deyglio
Founding President
The Logistics Institute
This blog is the fourth installment in the series The New New-Normal. We recommend reading the blogs in sequence: