We are dealing with many issues as a result of this pandemic. Many businesses are having serious problems. There have been government shutdowns, people working from home when they normally worked in an office and having your business team spread out because are not all in one place. There is the need to manage the stress that occurs for the business owner when they’re dealing with change in income, layoffs, furloughs, and simply, wondering what’s going to happen tomorrow.

We need to look beyond tomorrow.

A Unifying Vision.

Through-out my career, and in my book, Getting to ‘Us,” I have urged businesses to create a Unifying Vision. One single vision that will unite everyone you do business with or for.

This current pandemic is, sadly, a powerful example of what a Unifying Vision can be. Business leaders need to step back from the panic and learn from the power of this Unifying Vision.

In only a few weeks we have all been taught about “social distancing” and been reminded of “the need to wash our hands.” Now, we are watching people wearing surgical masks in public across the globe. People changing the way they do business and changing the way they socialize with friends. Everyone is focused on these basic tasks and changes. Why? Because what they want to live, and they want the world to survive this pandemic. That is a Unifying Vision.

The world is changing because of the Unifying Vision born from a fear of COVID-19. In that fear, people have found their noble purpose. Their purpose is to prevent the spread of COVID-19.

Lessons to be Learned.

CEOs, Business owners, and managers should look hard at this lesson and see how it works. We didn’t talk about “social distancing” a couple of weeks ago. We didn’t talk about washing our hands. Now, suddenly, that is what we are talking. A world unified to achieve a single goal has changed the way we talk, think and work.

People knowing that they can be part of the cure and part of the solution has given them a thirst for excellence. A desire to succeed. So, people are very quickly adapting to a new normal and joining the fight for an environment where they are not spreading the disease, not catching the disease, and not sharing the disease. People are working together as one, because the noble purpose is survival.

People were unified and re-trained almost over-night by this pandemic.

The power of Unifying Vision in business is that it brings everyone together as one. People need to belong to something that gives them purpose. Something that gives them meaning. When people have a cause to believe in, they will sacrifice and work harder. People will commit when they know they are part of something big, that they have a noble purpose, and that they have a role in the big picture. Everybody wants to be a part of the solution. People want a better tomorrow. People want to be empowered to be part of a solution. People want to have a role in the betterment of mankind.

Business leaders should be learning from this sweeping cultural change. While the pandemic is a powerful negative force, great leaders will easily apply the lessons to be learned to reach positive forward growth.

Find Your People Roles in Your Vision, Not just Jobs.

We have been forced outside our comfort zones in the last couple of weeks. Leaders have to get outside their comfort zones and allow people to be empowered to be part of your solution, part of your Unifying Vision. To do you need to find a role for each person in your vision. Not jobs. Not tasks. But in actual role in the vision.

We have all adopted new practices to be a part of “the cure.” People are not wearing masks because it is their job, people are not keeping social distancing because it is a task they were given. We have owned these lifestyle changes, because we understand our role in preventing the spread of COVID-19. Do your people see their role in your company’s future? Do people understand how they fit in to the big picture that you see for your company? Do you truly understand the role your teams play in your big Vision? When a leader masters the ability to get things done by having people do something that they embrace as their own, the leader has arrived.

Make Your Vision BIG!

Is your vision truly big enough? In only a few short months, this pandemic has swept the globe and changed how we live. The bigger your company’s vision, the more of the world you can change. When your vision is big enough, people will commit and change to fulfill your vision and to move in the direction of your dreams. People will enroll in an idea when it is so big that they know that they can be a part of it and that they can achieve and win. That idea has to be so big that it transcends self-interest.

Society’s changes to fight this pandemic are not all about self. People are protecting themselves, but they’re also very keenly aware of how their interaction with others could spread the disease. People are changing how they visit and travel so that they do not put senior citizens at risk. People are wearing masks, to prevent spreading the disease if they themselves are asymptomatic carriers. Without massive enforcement measures, people have shut businesses and stayed home because they are unified in this fight.

As a business leader, you need to set your vision so that it is so big , that it is bigger than you, bigger than your team, and it tells people that it is something that you cannot do alone to allow them to realize that they are needed. Then, you will have a vision that people can fully enroll in because they will find their Noble purpose in that vision.

Start the Future NOW!

Businesses are shutting down and business owners are feeling failure. But now is the time to take a look at your business and decide how you are going to come back. What will your vision for the future be when you get back in the game? Can you get back in the game now and start doing something from the comfort of your own home to keep your business thriving?

As your teams are working from home, do they truly understand the big vision? How can you get your people to change their lifestyle and everyday actions to commit to your cause and enroll in your vision?

Throughout this pandemic, Amazon shines. Jeff Bezos once had an idea that he wanted a warehouse on the moon. That is powerful big thinking. That unifying vision today is keeping many people alive by daily deliveries of household items and things needed for survival.

That kind of vision doesn’t happen every day. It happens through commitment and hard work, but it is fueled when a visionary leader looks into the abyss of fear and says, “I don’t feel this. I don’t feel fear. I want my vision to be so massive that my team and I will be a part of something so big that the world will never see anything like it again. When we overcome fear, we alter how we live.

Be Ready to Succeed.

When your team feels that impact, they will feel like they are embraced by you, they are empowered by you, and they need to be part of your purpose. Give them a chance to feel the nobility and empowerment to be a part of your vision.

It is amazing how last few weeks have changed our lives. It was so fast, that many haven’t taken the time to learn what these changes have taught us. Again, that drastic and encompassing change is what happens when a unifying vision pulls people together onto the same page with a single worthy objective. If you step back and reinvent your company through this trouble time, you will make it through this pandemic, and you will succeed on the other side.

As you reinvent your vision for your business, remember that vision is what will tie all of your people together in a single mobilizing force that will survive anything. Make sure that your vision is so big that everyone in your company, on your team, and in your world can see their role in your Unifying Vision.