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While it is a good thing to have roadmaps, by now everyone must have had the same satori : “The new norm is no norm.” 

For someone who comes with a strong background in business journalism, we are used to chaos and churn. Which is the reason why we chose this profession in the first place.. Black coffee with sugar on deadline took precedence over green tea or chamomile. No offense..

As editors, we worked with remote teams for years, did phone interviews with CEOs while they were driving to Abu Dhabi or sitting at an airport lounge in Paris or Cairo or Kuwait because they trusted you well enough to give you their insights on future industry trends on the go. Do raise your hand if we had that interaction. 

We were used to asking pertinent questions on Skype with regional heads in Saudi who preferred only audio. 

Made great headlines

What I am coming to is that I actually feel at home during the Covid-19 lockdown. Because in my profession we did not know any norm. As editors and journalists, we have filed stories from wherever the internet was the best. 

Or during certain events, many of us have sat cheek to jowl on the carpet (I kid you not) and hammered away at our laptops because the press room was packed to the gills. And beyond the deadline, frankly, we did not give a damn. My media fraternity and sorority will smile. They know which events I speak about. 

Our industry never knew what was the norm as we always looked for the pathfinders, the business deviants and the rule-breakers. Those kind of people and businesses made for great stories and good headlines too.

The secret sauce to success

For instance, a headline like “The Accidental CEO” would force people to read the article. Why? It could hold the secret sauce to success for millions who aspire to be the next CEO or another maverick business head. Who broke norms..

But what is the new sauce?  Self-publish your Thought Leadership. Be not shy. Now is the time to experiment with your owned media. Your blogs, e-books, trend advisory newsletters or alerts. Use the Brand Journalism method.

It is the right time. Because you have to the opportunity to do so from your living room – amidst the kids’ online schooling, the meal planning, the online grocery shopping and heck, the unwashed dishes. Because your roadmaps have vanished.

Now is the time to communicate your authentic voice in these interesting times. By harnessing the power of online to connect and collaborate with your colleagues, your peers, your clients, other businesses within your industry. Or those who just want to hear from you. Be visible to ensure that business continuity..

Claim your online space to freely express your ideas, fears, solutions and then innovate with other mavericks like yourself who think ahead of the pack. Who are willing to experiment and try new business models and markets to venture into.. Become the next Jonathan Livingstone Seagull and fly far above the flock.

Become ‘The Accidental CEO’ of your own future.  Write history. Because you are in the making. But if you wish to first get a free audit of your written work and some editorial advice, connect with me here.