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In Difficult Times, Apply More Imagination to Work

By Felipe Villarreal - Alian Plastics
CEO

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By Felipe Villarreal | CEO - Tue, 01/10/2023 - 16:00

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As Henry Ford said, "When everything seems to be going against you, remember that the airplane takes off against the wind, not with it.” 

In my last five articles, I wrote about how I see these 5Ss to win in today's business environment: Speed + Simplicity + Self-Confidence + Sacrifices = Success

Success must be translated to Growth. 

But what happens when, even as you work with this formula, timing and various events occur that are out of your hands and success begins to look like an uphill battle as difficult times arrive in the business, shaking your plans and forcing you to reconsider and reorganize your strategies and your organization?

The macroeconomics  in industries and markets force us to always be thinking about the future and rethinking the company’s strategy, which maybe in the past you would do on a yearly basis with a five-year outlook. Now, you might need to rethink company strategy every other month. 

When times become difficult for a business, it is essential to keep a cool head. There could be a simple solution that you won’t  notice if you are too stressed to see it.

Difficult times drive you to put an extra effort into your creativity. In the first company that I worked for and the one that forged me as a professional, GE, I learned to use and think like the slogan that I saw constantly throughout the organization: “Imagination at Work.” In my experience, during difficult times, you must diligently apply this slogan, think outside the box, put on your imagination and creativity hat, and embark on a path of possibly difficult decisions and reorganizations of ideas and priorities.

The manufacturing environment in plastic injection has a bright present and future in different markets, but it has passed through difficult moments, including the lack of resins worldwide, OEMs not having chips to produce cars and so not requesting parts from their suppliers, and personnel turnover that has grown exponentially with the post-pandemic economic reactivation. Having to face these issues all  together at the same time translates into challenges that have led to  the difficult environment that you are in. 

Rethinking business strategies and the path to follow doesn’t mean “stop doing and just rethink;” it is rethinking as you keep on going. And you can’t do it by yourself, which is why your team is key. As a leader, don’t forget to rebuild people’s morale to help weather tough times. Bring people together to focus on the same goal, step back and look at the big picture, paying extra attention to the details in the different processes.

People at all levels of the organization can have great ideas to make the business easier during difficult times, driving costs down in order to maintain the right price for your customer. During difficult times, you must also remember to never put the Top 2 company assets in jeopardy: the quality of people and the quality of your products.

Stop dwelling on problems all the time and do something that clears your mind. This can help you to stress less and lead to brighter ideas. I can give you an example: exercise. 

Personally speaking, when I run or do any cardio activity, my mind begins to generate an impressive number of good ideas for work, ironic as it may seem when doing an activity outside of work. It helps boost your imagination because it generates endorphins that give you a feeling of well-being. Really, get up from that chair, go for a run and you will realize that you are finding answers that you did not have before, that you are feeling better and happier. But why is this? 

Harvard Health Publishing and a CNN interview explain exactly what’s going on in the brain when you work out:

“The mental benefits of aerobic exercise have a neurochemical basis. Exercise reduces levels of the body's stress hormones, such as adrenaline and cortisol. It also stimulates the production of endorphins, chemicals in the brain that are the body's natural painkillers and mood elevators.”

Endorphins are responsible for the feelings of relaxation and optimism that you experience at the end of a hard workout.

CNN spoke to J. Kip Matthews, Ph.D., a sports and exercise psychologist, who explained that when you exercise, your brain increases the production of neurotransmitters, such as serotonin, which send messages throughout your nervous system.

Mental health is the foundation  for  life balance, and you need balance to overcome and take your organization to the next level during tough times. 

As Paulo Coelho aptly put it, “There are moments when troubles enter our lives, and we can do nothing to avoid them. But they are there for a reason. Only when we have overcome them, will we understand why they were there.”

Until the next time. Keep Safe!

Photo by:   Felipe Villarreal

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