‘If you’re Weak in Crisis…’ – 3 Ways to Quickly Adapt in Crisis

In Crisis Management, the ability to quickly adapt to change is key.

It is not the strongest of the species that survives, nor the most intelligent that survives. It is the one that is the most adaptable to change.
– Charles Darwin

When Life Wouldn’t Cooperate:

You’ve worked hard, surfed the internet hard and prayed hard to get financing for your startup, and finally, you’ve been summoned to come pitch to prospective foreign investors.

Your presentation is slated for 9.00am, and the venue is at Lekki Phase 2, while you stay at Iyana-Ipaja. You know being on time is not negotiable because you’re just one of the lucky few innovators that have been allotted time slots to pitch for the day. Punctuality is part of the hurdles to cross.

You rise at 6:00am, about thirty minutes late because you had burned the midnight oil putting finishing touches to your slides.

Thankfully, you’ve sorted out what to wear about a week earlier. Your remaining corporate wears are either dirty or gone for dry cleaning. The week-long preparation for the great day left you with no space to care about your wardrobe, after all you’ve already figured out what to wear.

You mumble some words of prayer, take a quick shower, book an Uber ride, and by 6:30, you are set for your commute.

You are notified by your Uber app that your driver is here, and you are just about stepping out when you see this glaring stain on the collar of your white shirt!

You decide to quickly drop some stuff in the car and plead with the Uber driver to give you few minutes before returning to attend to the shirt.

Luckily, you manage to get a good replacement; you change quickly and rush out to board the Uber. The time is now 6:55am, and you are now definitely behind schedule. It’s Tuesday, and there’s bound to be traffic on Third Mainland Bridge, but if your Uber guy is a smart driver, you might still be right on time.

You get outside, and to your utter dismay and confusion, the ‘Uber driver’ you dropped your items with is nowhere to be found!

You call his line, and he tells you he’s been waiting for you across the road, just opposite your apartment. And true to his words, there is a red Toyota Camry parked across the road. You check your app, and you confirm your driver indeed drives a red Camry.

Meanwhile you had dropped your items, including your laptop which contains your presentation, with a guy in a white Hyundai, Elantra, which now seems to have disappeared into thin air. The time is now 7.10am.

You have no contact detail of the driver, neither do you have his plate number, and when you ask around, no one seems to have noticed any white Hyundai packed on the lively street.

What would you do? How would you cope?

If you are weak in a crisis, you are weak indeed.
Prov.24:10 (GNB)

Innovation To The Rescue!

Scenarios like this place heavy demands on our leadership and innovative capabilities– our ability to master, manage and adapt to the (changing) demands of everyday life to be precise.

As we know, Innovation always shines through Creativity; but adaptability is yet another expression of the innovative spirit. Adaptability is a much-required attribute in today’s business world, and one very vital to career development,

Albert Einstein once said, “Innovation is the ability to see change as an opportunity and not a threat.

Innovation is the ability to see change as an opportunity and not a threat.- Albert Einstein @funmie_adebayo
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That is adaptability!

What is Adaptability?

In ecology, adaptability has been described as the ability to cope with unexpected disturbances in the environment. {1}

Furthermore, Businessdictionary.com defines Adaptability as ‘Ability of an entity or organism to alter itself or its responses to the changed circumstances or environment.’

In summary, Adaptability is the ability to respond to changing demands of every stage of life without any decline in efficiency or result (output)

In other words, Adaptability is the ability to find workaround for existence and productivity in non-conducive and unpalatable circumstances, especially in periods of crisis, for instance, the tragic effects of the COVID-19 pandemic on Healthcare and the economy.

Adaptability is responding effectively to changing demands of every stage of life without any decline in your output or result! @funmie_adebayo
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Beyond Conformity… Masters of Circumstances

As mentioned earlier, adaptability is the ability to find workarounds for existence and productivity in non-conducive and unpalatable circumstances, especially in periods of crisis.

Adaptability, however, goes beyond conforming to change like chameleons, or complying with whatever life brings our way.

In other words, adaptability means mastering our circumstances to the point of being able to influence and dictate the pace of events around us!
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It goes beyond being pliable like victims of circumstances.

Rather, adaptability also involves jump-starting or initiating change. It is in essence, setting the pace of change!

In other words, adaptability means mastering our circumstances to the point of being able to influence and dictate the pace of events around us!

Krishnamurti once said,

“It is no measure of health to be well adjusted to a profoundly sick society”

Moreover, John Dewey said,

“Complete adaptation to environment means death. The essential point in all response is the desire to control environment.”

That is the true essence of Adaptability!

“It is no measure of health to be well adjusted to a profoundly sick society” Krishnamurti @funmie_adebayo
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But there is a spirit in man:
and the inspiration of the Almighty giveth them understanding.
Job 32:8 (KJV)

3 Ways to Quickly adapt… and a fourth…

“Complete adaptation to environment means death. The essential point in all response is the desire to control environment.” – John Dewey @funmie_adebayo
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Credit – Photo by Ivan Siarbolin from Pexels

Having explained in ‘If You’re Weak In Crisis’ that adaptability is a much-required attribute in today’s business world, and in ‘Beyond Conformity: Masters Of Circumstances’ that Adaptability goes beyond conforming to whatever life throws at us without any objection, the questions is:

How can one get so adaptable to our present environment and circumstances as to start initiating positive changes? For instance, how can we so master the post-COVID-19 era that we start championing innovative changes to the benefit of our society?

Here are three simple ways to start:

1) Calmly look out for the best options and alternatives at the face of difficulties as recommended in There is Always a Way: Navigating Dead-end Situations in 5 Steps

2) Be proactive enough to plan ahead, while also making room for alternatives in case things don’t turn out as planned.

3) Always anticipate and strategize for changing environments and circumstances.

Above all, a fourth way is this: