Moving forward and thriving in life is not a matter of mere luck but a dedicated systematic approach to grab opportunities coming your way by having the appropriate mindset. Understanding that there is a land grab coming, shifting to a problem, solution, and reward (PSR) mindset, and approaching the clients from a point of empathy rather than ego is crucial as explained by Jeff Echols in today’s ArchiNet talk. Jeff is the President & Chief strategy officer of echoEngagement, the Director of Brand Strategy at EntreArchitect, and the Host of the Build your Brand podcast. He has 20 years of experience working in, starting, and managing architectural firms.

The feelings of uncertainty with recent events and outbreak of pandemic are on the rise. When economies seem to be going downhill and there are more challenges on the horizon one must always remember the upsides that new challenges bring new needs and great opportunities. Through this one can get stability back to work, solve and stay stronger in the practice.

We need to understand that everything has changed for our clients in various ways; if we align with that change we can come to see the new opportunities. With many firms competing for the same projects, making yourself more relevant for the job rather than showing your differentiation will make you stand out from the rest. Relevance is everything; it is in the eye of the beholder, it is determined by the client. It is important for us to understand that our clients are the ones that determine whether or not we are relevant. This leads us to the three main ideas which will give you a leg up and can set you apart from the others.

a) There's a land grab coming; whenever there is a major change there is a possibility of a land grab. This implies that individuals take over job roles and projects of other professionals during major economic change. Things are evolving very quickly with recent pandemic, new ways will be found to operate, will you be on the front line to check and help the client's new needs? You need to be flexible and aware of these opportunities, if not others will take advantage.

b) Mindset; There are 3 basic mindsets that we all have during crises. The mindset we adapt will greatly influence our ability to survive, thrive, and grow during crises. The first mindset is The Hunker down Mindset; as things are moving fast, they will convince themselves to figure out new ways once everything is settled, after the pandemic is gone. Having this mindset will not make you move forward in fact it will drag you backward as opportunities are passing by. The second mindset is The Status Quo Mindset; they muddle through the situation, find a way but keep doing what they have always done and hope to come out well from the pandemic. By having this mindset you are not accelerating, you are trying to go with the flow and in a competitive landscape you are not moving forward. The third mindset is the Growth Mindset; they figure out in order to keep moving forward as quickly as possible they need to find the changes they need to make, pivot the services they offer or the firm structure. The best chance for us to not only survive but thrive, grow and come out stronger on the other side is to have a growth mindset.

We need to figure out a way to find new opportunities, new ways to serve the clients, and match the new needs. The best practice you can follow to have a growth mindset is the Idea of viewing situations through the PSR lens; Problem (P)-which your clients have, and needs to be solved, Solution (S)-the solution that you can provide and Reward/Result (R)-the value after the solution is implemented. We usually don't value the result much; we keep our focus on the end product but not the value it will provide to the client/community. When they spend money it becomes more important for us to focus on the value of the result. If a firm speaks of the value, it will be differentiated and be more relevant to the client.

c) Ego vs Empathy; this idea is based on psychology and neuroscience. When we start a conversation from a point of ego i.e. what you know and think is important. Human brain goes in the defensive or repulsive direction. Clients don't want to hear how great you are, they want to know how you will make their life better, and they want to hear about the benefits from the result. When we start a conversation from a point of empathy, a place of understanding their needs, feelings and how to connect with those, start talking about the things that matter the most to them and empathizing with those feelings, frustrations and needs. They are more likely to choose you. That is when we are already aligned with their brains.

In the end if we keep saying and doing things in the same old fashion even in recent times/situations, you might become very irrelevant to clients, their needs and opportunities of today. So remember that there is a land grab coming your way, analyze the mindset you have, apply the PSR lens and always start every conversation from the point of empathy. New doors of opportunities will open for you to have a stable growth.