The new normal now is everyone for
himself, God for us all!
Coronavirus will be remembered as one
of the greatest social equalizers in the
history of the world. Young chaps in some
parts of Europe took things lightly and
claimed it was an old peoples’ disease and
then suddenly they tested positive and
even babies have tested positive.
Coronavirus is also the ultimate
leadership test. When Donald Trump was
elected president of the United States,
few were prepared for what was to come.
In the most abrasive and confrontational
leadership that most people have ever
seen anywhere in the world, Trump defied
and indeed redefined the office of the
president.
He had names for anyone who crossed
him be it a political opponent or a foreign
leader. He sent out a clear message that
it would always have to be his way or the
highway and anyone who did not go his
way was declared persona non grata.
He bullied his way through everything. He
bullied his way through all the republican
candidates during the primaries putting
them down and calling them names. He
bullied his way through every potential
scandal when he became the republican
flag bearer. He bullied his way to the
elections by speaking down on his
opponent and encouraging his followers
to do the same. He got elected and was
sworn in and from day one, he has bullied
his way through every other thing.
The Russian scandal cropped up and
again he bullied his way through it.
His henchmen were jailed for different
offences committed on his behalf but he
just could not stop. The impeachment saga
showed up and for once it seemed like he
had been cornered. Surely there was no
way he was going to bully his way through
this one! Indeed he got impeached by the
lower house, but then as expected got
acquitted by the senate, the upper house.
Then the bullying continued.
At a prayer breakfast he came out
bullying the speaker of the House of
Representatives right in her presence.
Could the bullying ever stop? It seemed
like this was the new normal and everyone
just had to get used to it to survive.
And then came the most unexpected
adversary from half way around the
52 MAL35/20 ISSUE
While we practice social distancing and
try our best to keep that distance between
the haves and have-nots, the reality is that
Coronavirus has bridged the social dis-
tance gap created by the African elite in
a manner that nothing else has ever been
able to do. There is no private hospital for
the rich and a different one for the poor.
Things are so bad in a way that few on
earth can fathom!
world. It was not a person. It was not an
army. It was not a country. It was a virus.
Coronavirus showed up and no amount
of bullying could tame the spread of the
virus in the United States. No amount
of propaganda could slow it down and
no amount of speaking down at it could
make it go away. It had come and it had
revealed the cracks. It showed that the
United States government was not ready
and compared with other nations of the
world, they actually lagged behind! Microsoft did will be challenged. He said
that a young upstart would emerge and
put them out of business overnight.
Every leader and indeed every human
being will have their Coronavirus
moment. That moment where everything
that you had done in the past is
rendered obsolete and just cannot work
anymore. It is that moment when old
strategies suddenly become redundant.
That moment when hopelessness runs
roughshod over everyone. Are you ready
for your Coronavirus moment? When your Coronavirus moment arrives,
you will not be able to wish it away. China
built a thousand bed hospital in days. It
was the epic center of the virus and where
it originated from but today they are also
taking the praise for how they handled
it. They were ready for their Coronavirus
moment.
Every ones’ Coronavirus moment comes
in the form of pressure. Contrary to
what people may think, pressure is not
an enemy. It is an ally. Pressure comes
to reveal the strength of the foundation
and it comes to take us to the next level.
Everyone has a next level and it is not
possible to get there without pressure.
The effect of pressure on you will however
reveal your preparedness.
How does one prepare for pressure you
may ask? Being aware that a day will come
when the things you believe and the things
that you have done will be challenged is
the first step. The world is moving at an
alarming rate. We therefore cannot be
permanently stuck to old methods and
practices. Bill Gates wrote in his book,
Business At The Speed Of Thought that
a day will come when everything that
This is what I call healthy paranoia. All you
know today is not all you need to know.
A company is making a bullet right now
with your company name on it. How ready
are you for that? There is no advantage in
riding a dead horse. If the horse you are
riding is dead, then get off. Don’t set up a
commission to look into dead horses.
There is no throne without overcoming
Goliath. There is no testimony without a
test and neither is there a message without
a mess.
Build capacity against your Coronavirus
moment. Build capacity to deliver what
you have built capacity for. This is not a
play on words. Many build capacity but
in the day of trouble they do not know
how to effectively deliver what they built
capacity for and hence they get stuck like
people who did not build capacity to start
with.
Everyone will one day face what Trump is
facing with Coronavirus twist. Will you be
ready? Remember, it is the day when all
that worked for you before will not work
anymore.
Similarly for years we have spoken with
leaders all over the world that they needed