Leadership Magazine – COVID-19: Cross Roads

COVID-19: Cross Roads

Jan 13, 2021 Leader Management 0

The year 2020 ended and the New Year has found all of us at Cross Roads. Being at crossroads is a common experience in organizational and personal life. It is a state of confusion and difficulty to make right decisions. However, though we are at crossroads, as we start the New Year, we must cross the rods. As individuals, organizations and indeed the country, it seems difficult to make decisions given the uncertainty that Covid-19 poses to us. There is a growing mix up of idea from Corona does not exist; Corona has ended, Covid-19 is still a grave disease and the vaccine is around the corner.

So, what is the right message to base on in making personal and corporate decisions? Difficult as making a decision may be; we all have to cross the roads. In simple terms, to make decisions of what to do in the year 2021 as it rolls on. We should not keep matching time, lamenting and regretting how disastrous Covid-19 rendered the year 2020.

Organizations have faced difficulties in the past year after the onset of Covid-19. Hard decisions were taken to survive. There were multiple effects on individuals and organizations when lockdown was instituted; even the partial lifting did not ease life for some people. Life has continued to be very hard and precarious over the last half a year.

It has now become more complicated with the community infections of the virus, demanding medication that many people may not afford. Even when institutions of learning were partially opened and soon full scale, parents lost income and were unable to meet their obligations. These are hard times. We are at crossroads. But, we must cross the roads.

I wish to outline a few elements to consider for organizational and individual energies in these Covid-19 times through 2021:
• Consider short term decisions, of not more than six months at a given point. For now, cross the roads by planning what may be possible up to June 2021 or thereafter.
• Diversification in business is critical- if you were in one line of business, look around for other appropriate businesses to lay hands on.
• Filter information–there is a lot circulating around social media, but, do not rush to decide based on what you hear the first time.
• Try and retry–in these Covid-19 times, let us try several times different options; we need not quickly give up as situation is still hard.
• Use of networks and contacts will continue to be a key resource in manoeuvering the Covid times. Individuals and organizations will support you when properly approached.
• Cost cutting is not an option now but a reality. We must leverage our survival now on cutting off non-essential expenditures, or those that can be avoided or postponed.
• Pool resources–this situation may require people coming together putting their resources together to run a joint business or to pay for common expenses.
• Humility–Covid-19 has affected us all in diversity. It is time to be humbler in our being and community life.

As we start this year, I urge our Christian leadership to guide the Church on how steadily to cross the roads. It will be bad leadership to indicate to Christians that we are at crossroads and unsure of what will happen in 2021. We are at crossroads but must cross the roads! The future within the Covid era is still uncertain, but positively, we must steer into the future step by step as 2021 rolls on.

I congratulate Leadership editorial team for keeping in print through hard times. I thank all our readers, and call upon you to share feedback through letters to the editor.

Happy New Year 2021 to you all.

Prof. Vincent Bagire