First, I hope you are fine!
I know times are tough. Only three weeks ago, my wife Andrea and I went to the Vabali in Berlin - it is an amazing wellness and sauna oasis in the hear of Berlin. We had a birthday voucher we were going to use.
At the time there was no case in Berlin and only a few in Germany. We had a few wonderful hours - thanks Michael J. - and returned home safely. The virus was already on our mind and we were very careful.
When we left, the queue caused a waiting time of 90 minutes plus.
Today life is very different.
In only three weeks Germany reached 20.000 cases. Within the last 24 hours, we added about 5.000 cases! Germany is one of the countries with the fast growth surpassing Iran in total cases.
Everything is closed. Almost everything I should say.
On the other hand, people are having Corona parties - looking at Italy and the drama that plays out there this behaviour is heart-breaking.
We see exponential development in action. Even I think back three weeks and find it hard to comprehend. This so-called “deceptive” phase is very tricky. Numbers are extremely small but the growth rate is significant. A doubling every couple of days.
Now all of us get a glimpse of what it means when something is developing exponentially and crossed the “knee-point”. That is the point when small numbers “suddenly” become large.
It is only sad that this happens by experiencing pain.
We will re-calibrate our lives and maybe even our society. There are a lot of positives in it as well though pain prevails.
Carbon dioxide emission will drop sharply in 2020. China can see the blue sky again. We have quality time for our children and our loved ones. We learn how to collaborate and work without travelling for every 30 or 60 minutes meeting.
What else comes to mind?
I suggest we also take this opportunity and consider what other exponential developments will mean for us when they are crossing that knee-point.
Technology is right now at this point. We are just leaving the area where we have small numbers and changes. During the next few years, we will move into the steep growth path. Changes will come at a rapid pace.
How do we cope?
We have to learn to calm down, relax, slow-down, de-tech, reflect, focus and much more.
What are your strategies to cope with exponential times?