What if the pandemic actually has a positive impact on businesses globally by forcing innovation, rapid change, and improvements in employee wellness activities?

1. The global pandemic has created some interesting times on the planet in the past few years.
For me, as the European Director of a large company and also as the manager of a smaller
company, it’s been very interesting to see the different impact the pandemic has had on
businesses globally.
In my opinion, it’s far easier to manage a larger company than it is to manage a smaller
company through a global crisis. The pandemic has created very tough times for smaller
companies. Never has innovation been more important than it is now. Periods of great
innovation are a time for doing things differently, for looking at things differently and seeing what
you can change. It’s actually embracing change and being willing to be the agent of change - to
be the change the world now requires. It’s that willingness to step forward and realize that your
business has to change and to look for the people who are willing to change with you because
no longer is the status quo what it was before. No longer is business the same as it was.
Everywhere that business has been done the same way for hundreds of years - in the blink of
an eye, that has all completely changed. We now have a completely new playing field for small
businesses, for medium sized companies and for large companies alike. All companies have to
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2. innovate if they are to survive and thrive, especially smaller companies. To survive and to thrive,
they have to be willing to change.
Here are three tips that I’ve found very important when managing a smaller company in these
tumultuous times:
1. Always ask the question “What is truly possible here that I have never previously
considered?” When you look at something that you have never considered before, new
ideas come up, new thought processes are born, and new energies emerge. Make sure
you involve your staff in this process, by asking them “What do you know?” You employ
them to do their job, and they have a brain, they have awareness, they have capacities
that can contribute to the business. A lot of the time, employees are not contributing as
much as they possibly can to the business - so why not tap into their resources more fully?
When you ask them a question, it opens up a new possibility for them to consider what
they truly know. That opens up the space for them to be the leader in the business. You
want to empower leaders not to create followers. The more you can empower
employees to step up to lead more, the more that can create.
2. The second question you can ask is “What income stream can pay for this?”
Be aware of what income stream can pay for aspects of the business. “What’s possible
here that I never considered?” Once you have an income stream in place, then you know
that your costs are covered and you can allow the business to grow and develop with
multiple income streams. It’s so important, especially in the time of COVID to always be
creating new income streams, and you do that by asking “What else can I add to my
business? What else is truly possible?”
3. The third tip is to promote Flexibility within the business - the ability to move, to change,
to shift and to innovate. Innovation is where you choose change and you continue to
change. This applies both to your business and to your life in general. By continually
changing, you develop the momentum to keep moving forward, to keep expanding and
continue to improve your performances each and every day. This prevents you from getting
stuck in the same place, doing the same thing and getting the same results. Be willing to be
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3. on the cutting edge, be willing to be the leader in your industry, being willing to do things
differently. Many of the greatest innovations in history came from supposed “mistakes”,
where people actually did something different and it created something totally different. If
you’re willing to do something different, then you will be able to create something different.
In this time of global pandemic, it is absolutely vital to change. As you change, you look and
you see something different, and as a different viewpoint shows up, something new and
different will manifest in the world. As Steve Jobs said, “When you ask more from life, life will
gift to you.” You also need to be willing to receive more from life.
Be willing to be the change you desire to see in the world.
Be willing to be the energy that creates the change, and do what’s required to make the
business thrive. Enjoy that space of thriving, of growing, of changing -and keep asking “What
else is truly possible?” to perpetuate that sense of expansion beyond the restrictions that
COVID has lumbered the world with. That is where the true magic lies. And that is where the
gift of COVID hides for businesses large and small.
About the Author:
Paul Kearney is a Business Mentor, Keynote Speaker, Holistic
Wellness Practitioner and avid horse lover. Boasting an
impressive array of expertise in both corporate strategy and
holistic living, he is a Director of Access Consciousness
International Ltd, responsible for operations across Europe,
Russia, the Middle East and Africa, is an Access Consciousness
Certified Facilitator, a Joy of Business Facilitator, a qualified Yoga, Tai Chi and Meditation teacher and a
Business Owner. Paul is also the Manager of Castello di Casalborgone, a fully restored Italian castle dating
from the Middle Ages.
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