The acute phase of the Covid-19 pandemic and market collapse may (hopefully) be over, but the need to be visible and vocal, to communicate effectively, remains.
The medical, economic, social and political ramifications of the pandemic have only just begun. Just like we never completely healed from the Global Financial Crisis (GFC), except for asset price inflation, the pandemic fallout will likely be vast, painful, and sustained. As a result, your communication plan should remain at an elevated level for the foreseeable future.
A key, underlying component of your communication plan should be your “point of view.”
A point of view is the angle, the filter, through which you view things and the resulting opinion and beliefs that come from that positioning.
During a crisis, people want answers. Unfortunately, uncertainty is at its peak during a crisis and our ability to have “answers” is at its low. However, the best leaders during times of uncertainty assess the situation, seek expertise, and connect the dots to create an informed point of view and then they share it widely.
In the U.S., fiscal and monetary policy have rescued the financial markets (at least temporarily), and many advisors are breathing easier. But just look outside and you can see the lack of economic activity and the fomenting anger. Free money is treating the symptom, but it is not a vaccine that prevents the underlying condition.
As of just two months ago, we had all-time highs in the stock market and record low unemployment here in the U.S. On the surface, things looked pretty good.
But the pandemic pointed out just how fragile that environment was. This economic confidence survey from Gallup shows how quickly things changed.
The current extreme environment offers you two “bookend” points of view to frame the current environment. Look at these and think about which one immediately makes sense to you.
1. The economy and financial markets will recover just like they always have, and fiscal and monetary policy will always be there to backstop any big issues that may arise.
2. This is unchartered territory and I better pay close attention to what’s happening as things may not unfold as neat and tidy as they have in the past.