Author’s note: This is the third in a series of articles on the perspective gained from the coronavirus, meditations from a generation’s first experience of sheltering in place.
The story of Cinderella is about one quote: “Just because it’s what’s always been done doesn’t mean it’s what should be done.”
Now more than ever, it’s time we take that seriously.
The coronavirus interrupted the natural rhythms of our lives, and for the first time in a long time, we are asking the deeper questions.
Like, why do we need to work from an office? Apparently Twitter doesn’t think that’s essential, as they are offering all their employees a long-term work-from-home option.
Or, why do we need to gather together at church or social clubs? Some churches initially refused to close their doors, while other churches have always relied heavily on internet-based connections.
(Our culture, especially the millennial portion, is literally afraid of the word “should.” We need to deal with this word before we can answer Cinderella’s quandary. In a word, “should” exists because responsibility exists. The word “should” is necessary, but the recent reaction against it is [in not-so-equal-parts] a rebellion of authority and an overreaction of finding it in the wrong places.)
It’s true, we shouldn’t use the word should unless we have to. (Ironic as it is.)
So, with that out of the way, what should we do at work?
Which is to ask two questions.
1: What is our moral imperative—meaning, what should we do because it is morally absolute?
2: What is our mission statement—meaning, what should we do because it suits our goals?
For the first, moral absolutes are hard to come by these days. For example, if you Google “Moral Imperative”, you will find as a top result a random group of Aquapreneurs called ”The Seasteading Institute”, whose moral imperatives are as follows: ”Enrich the poor. Cure the Sick. Feed the Hungry. Clean the atmosphere. Restore the oceans. Live in balance with nature. Power the world sustainably. Stop fighting.”
A strange and eclectic assortment, no doubt, but an example of what fuels their work. It’s respectable, if a little disconnected and biased. However, they are a perfect example of most of us.
Accordingly, their mission statement is: “Trying to solve humanity’s biggest problems with seasteading solutions.”
So when faced with decisions, they have two metrics to go by, the moral imperatives, and the missional imperatives.
Breaking your business up into these two categories will help answer Cinderella’s quandary and will help us reinvent ourselves into the next generation—which may very well become known as the pandemic generation.
Some things we do because it’s tradition, and some of those things need to pass away. Other things we do because they are part of our moral fabric. Still others we do because they form the backbone of our mission.
At the end of the day, we have here before us a missional imperative (that we should intentionally adapt to the changing times if our mission is to succeed). And now we have categories for thinking. All that’s left is deciding—are you going to go with Cinderella or stay behind?