2020 – A Pit stop Year In Review #5

In the previous post of this series I spoke about my book, How to Stay Positive and Productive. This book helped my readers and me set the tone for 2020. However, it is not easy to maintain a positive approach during such times. So, let us dig a bit deeper into the process of this mental conditioning. This is where treating the extended lockdown period as a pitstop in the race of life really helped. But, before we examine the pitstop year in review, let us first understand the relevance of this metaphor borrowed from F1 racing (Formula 1).

The Pitstop in F1 Races

F1 is a very exciting sport and is much more than just developing the fastest car or pushing the pedal to race ahead. One of the fascinating aspects of this race is the pitstop. Since the race continues for over an hour, the cars need to take one or more pitstops during the race. These pitstops last a few seconds, but are crucial for various reasons. It is during this period that the cars are refueled, tyres are changed and maintenance is undertaken.

The efficiency with which the pitstop is executed has some bearing on the outcome of the race. However, more importantly, it is an opportunity to re-engineer the car to meet the upcoming demands of the race. Hence, the pitstop strategy can make or break one’s chances of winning a race.

The Pitstop Metaphor

The above example of a pitstop serves as a near perfect backdrop to put 2020 in context of the race of our lives. While we keep running the race of life on the outdoor race track, this period forced us indoors into the pit lane. It’s duration relative to our life spans can also be compared to that of a pitstop in a F1 race.

However, these are only the physical attributes. Most importantly, the approach that we deploy during this period determines our readiness to win the race in the next phase of our lives.

So, let us see how the pitstop metaphor can be applied in the context of the Year in Review 2020.

Mental Attitude For The Pitstop Year

The first aspect of applying the metaphor of the pitstop year is reflected in the right mental attitude. If there is one thing other than the physical risk of the coronavirus that caused more widespread damage, it is mental health issues. Unfortunately, we do not have well defined metrics to measure mental health. However, it is expected that a very significant proportion of the global population battled with mental well being and related issues during this pitstop year.

So, if we change the way we look at this period, it could make a world of difference. Instead of missing the adrenaline rush of the race track, we can adopt a pitstop mindset. There are heavy penalties in F1 for speeding beyond the permissible limits, largely because of safety considerations. This analogy applied perfectly to social distancing in the pitstop year, where the penalty could be as severe as death.

All it took for me to come to terms with the New Normal of the pitstop year – 2020 was to anchor my thinking to the pitstop metaphor.

Breaking down the Pitstop Components

However, it did not stop there. In addition to the cognitive aspects of the pitstop, there are execution related aspects that can be learnt as well. A perfectly executed pitstop is a marvel to watch and an engineering delight. It requires teamwork, technology, operational rigor and much more.

These aspects inspired me to extend the pitstop metaphor to the pitstop acronym. This acronym also served as a guiding light for our digital transformation initiatives. Here is the breakdown of the various pitstop components required for success:

• Process – reconfigured and re-imagined in line with new operating realities
• Intelligent Information – critical to keep readjusting with real time feedback
• Technology – to enable efficient and effective operations
• Strategy – to chose the right battles to fight along with the gear and ammunition
• Training – upskilling is not a choice any longer
• Operations – maintaining the operational rigor in imperfect conditions
• People – last but not the least, aligning and motivating the team

Each of these components is vital for execution. Our ability to anchor our thinking to the pitstop year and align our plans with these components was critical to our success. Without this, we could not have made remarkable progress on our digital transformation initiatives.

Outlook for 2021 and Beyond – Winning the Race

We can’t predict the contours of the New Normal. We can’t predict it’s timelines either. However, we can anchor our thinking to some mental model.

2020 was a pitstop year. We don’t know yet what 2021 and beyond will have in store for us and we may need to anchor our thinking to some other framework. However, we can’t get back to the race of life and win, if our pitstop is not executed well. So, if there are unfinished elements of the pitstop that you need to complete, it will be a great idea to finish it up. And let us all hope that the track is cleared of all debris from last year’s accidents, as we get back to the race of our lives!

Pitstop Year in Review 2020

Check out the master article for the Year in Review 2020 that contains links to all the other posts in the series. Also, bookmark the master article on the browser to read more about each of the 20 thoughts from 2020 and lessons for 2021.

Editor’s Note:

The pitstop from the F1 races is the stuff that dream metaphors are made up of. Rajiv Maheshwari, the author tops it up with an acronym to boot – the P.I.T.S.T.O.P framework.

No wonder, Google highlights it’s components as a Featured Snippet. Prepare to race ahead even during tough times by reading about the pitstop mindset.

About The Author

Rajiv Maheshwari is a business and start-up advisor, and the co-founder of From The Experts Mouth. He is a management professional with over 25 years of experience, and worked as CEO for a decade, and in leadership roles with NYSE listed companies such as Accenture and WNS.

He is a Chartered Accountant and MBA (Director’s Merit List from IIM Bangalore) and an autodidact, who is on the path of self-directed life long learning and sharing. He is a thought leader, author and keynote speaker and has developed several frameworks to bridge the gap between academia and industry.