Blue or Red?

Depending on the kind of person you are, one of these scenes may seem more inviting to you than the other.

Imagine staring out at a beachfront view, taking in a vast endless ocean. The waves are rolling in on the white sand, and the sun is peaking over the horizon behind the waters. Some of us need nothing more. The stillness of this moment is a little bit of heaven on earth. No crowds and no activity. It's just you and the ocean—you couldn't ask for more.

Others require people around, sports in the water, music in the background, and the aroma of food cascading through the skies to really enjoy what's before them. Which are you? How do you take your ocean? Blue or red?

The question is an important one as it may be an indicator of the kind of business leader you are. Leadership comes in all shapes and sizes, and one style isn't better than another. There isn't a right or wrong per se. There is, however, a "right" that must take into consideration two factors.

1. What are the present conditions?

2. How do they impact arriving at the determined destination?

Let's begin with the conditions. What's the water like today—the temperature, the tide, the people?

In recent, all businesses have had to assess the current environment. 2020 has been filled with surprises and seems to be here to test our limits. Despite all the planning and preparing for what this year would bring our organizations, reevaluation became our order of the day. There hasn't been a single entity able to continue with business as usual. The conditions have forced us all to take a second look.

Hopefully, we all had a common element stamped upon our analysis list. When swimming, we want to know what kind of waters we're venturing in. The same goes for doing business. We can't float in our oceans forever without understanding what we have emerged ourselves in. This is particularly true in a changing economy and transforming marketplace.

So again, the question to answer is, "Blue or red ocean?" If your company's industry or business sector is filled with competition, overly crowded with options, and has become familiar to its customers, your waters are red. There may not be much room for growth or any new company entrance. By all means, these conditions may work for you.

Blue oceans are quiet, limited in opposition, and filled with endless unknowns. These waters are unexplored and untainted by competition. There is zero to little reference points for a business to look to in determining its way forward. It's untapped waters which can be intimidating, but also deep and powerful in opportunity and growth.

As we all stand in the middle of our oceans, it appears that the 2020 tides may be forcing us out into bluer waters. Though the destination hasn't changed, the conditions have impacted how we will get there. Listen, for as long as this earth stands, there will always be untapped ocean territory yet discovered. There is a deeper potential in the marketplace unexplored. Blue oceans can derive from within red ones. We do so by expanding existing industry boundaries.

Here's our chance to dive into the crystal, clear seas where no one else is wading through. Since we are already in the unfamiliar and forced into the unknown, why not dive in fully submerged?