Complacency breeds mediocrity. Good is the enemy of great. We’ve all heard these phrases. They’re meant to be motivational, inspiring us to push ourselves. Be better. Do more. But more often than not, I see the words get twisted in a way that leaves us feeling like we can never quite be good enough.

Throughout my conversations with friends, family, and colleagues, we often address the question, “so what’s next?” As someone who is surrounded by so many high-achieving people, I can quickly become discouraged just thinking about it. Questions like, “What’s next?” “What else is out there?” “How will I know when I’ve ‘made it’?” can easily consume my thoughts and I catch myself getting sucked into a mindset of always striving for something more, without being entirely sure of what “more” is.

Ever feel like you’re being watched? I’m writing this in late October and Halloween decorations are out in full force. It’s the time of year everything gets just a bit spookier. But this isn’t a blog about ghosts and goblins; this is a blog about influence.

When we hear the word “influence,” we might think of a social media account with millions of followers, or maybe a great mentor we’ve had, or perhaps a high-profile leader of an organization.

But the reality is that we all carry some level of influence on the people around us.

I recently had the opportunity to participate in a MasterMind group comprised of fellow ISU alumni. The focus of this study group was the concept of resilience. During this 4-week MasterMind we covered a variety of insightful topics, but there was one topic that really stuck out to me: Antifragility.

We are living in unprecedented times. Right now, one in three Americans are working from home. Businesses and restaurants are closing their doors to the public. Schools are shut down for the rest of the academic year. Shelter-in-place directives are impacting our economies. Every day we are receiving new updates about new disruptions as we attempt to combat the COVID-19 pandemic.

Everyone everywhere is feeling disrupted in some way, shape, or form. And this disruption looks different for everyone. For some, they may be facing the fear of going out of business. For others, they may be juggling the additional responsibilities of childcare provider, housekeeper, teacher, cook, etc. Others may be dealing with the impact on parents or grandparents as they are forced to stay inside and not allowed any visitors. Some are being affected more drastically than others, but we are all feeling impacted in some way.

Now, more than ever, we need to look at those around us through an empathetic lens. In an age of sudden disruption, we can all come together and be unified in that we are ALL impacted in some way by this pandemic. For many, that means that priorities have suddenly shifted. Things that were so important just a couple of weeks ago are suddenly no longer at the top of the priority list. This also means that we must approach our conversations with our clients from a posture of seeking to understand the world they are living in and asking a different set of questions about how we can add value to them during these times.