Nanci Govinder – Downsizing Risks, Summer Series Interview

Nanci Govinder – Downsizing Risks, Summer Series Interview

Each week during July and August, I am featuring one of the interviews from my book,  Tales of People Who Get It, and post it on the blog so that you may learn from some of the interviewees.  This week, I feature Nanci Novinder, who showed her vulnerability and asked for help.

Related: 

Living an Authentic Life – Gabriel Draven, Summer Series Interviews
Leading Women toward Self-Sufficiency, Anthea Rossouw – Summer Interview Series
Pay Your Taxes – George Fraser, Summer Series Interviews
Building Relationships – Andrea Nierenberg, Summer Series Interviews
Samy Chong – Employees, Your Most Valuable Asset, Summer Series Interviews

In 2007, I published my book, Tales of People Who Get It, which is based on interviews with successful people. The Invisible Mentor blog was born of my book. Let’s take a step back in time to the fall of 2007, I had been thinking about ways to market Tales of People Who Get It and hoping for a burst of inspiration. While I was taking a walk in High Park in Toronto, it popped into my consciousness that Tales of People Who Get It was my Board of Invisible Mentors. What happened, without being aware of it, is that when I faced a problem, I would remember parts of interviews that I had conducted, and would know how to solve that problem. After conducting research, The Invisible Mentor blog was born, and five years later the concept of the invisible mentor has changed.

~Challenge~

I was part of a management team that was responsible for downsizing a business unit, which included firing a large part of the staff, and relocating the activities of the business unit to another country, with only 12 out of 72 people remaining to support the business unit. We had to show up at a major European medical conference six weeks later as one of the larger exhibitors. We lost product managers with years of experience and the marketing coordinator who was responsible for the exhibition, logistics, hotels, and so on.

~Resolution~

I looked around the offices in Europe and the USA for expertise. I pulled salespeople with sound product knowledge out of the field in the US as well as product managers, company veterans to come and help us. The new product managers that were hired in new offices and those that were still working their termination period in their previous jobs took a vacation and came to the conference to help out. I explained the severity and urgency of the situation and there was no ‘us’ versus ‘them’, which was the perception that prevailed between the country organizations and the Headquarters.

~Lessons Learned~

1. Don’t be afraid to show your vulnerability and ask for help.
2. If your intention is clear and honest, people will rally around you and unify toward a common goal or vision.
3. Don’t just focus on short-term costs, but rather focus on long-term benefits such as the impact on the brand, customer retention and company image and values.

~How to Integrate Your Personal and Professional Life~

I do not make distinctions between the two anymore. I have one life—that’s it. In my work, I see this separation cause a lot of conflict in people as in:

1. “How can I achieve work-life balance?” The thing is that this does not exist outside of ourselves. Balance or equanimity can only be achieved within oneself.
2. I take regular breaks in the day to stop, be still and pay attention to my thoughts, feelings and what is going on around me. I pay attention to the voice in my head and question my beliefs at that moment and observe if they are working for or against me.
3. I, like most professionals, used to spend an awful amount of time being busy and just “doing” in a sleepwalking mode, hoping that the “answer” will miraculously appear. Now, when I lack clarity or focus; I stop, pay attention to what is happening within and around me and the answers emerge.

~Formula for Success~

I know that I am being successful at this stage of my life when:

• I do something every day that contributes to my personal vision of “Ridding the world of fear.”
• I no longer need external affirmation of my achievements.
• When I stop judging myself and others and accept things for what they are.

In a nutshell, it’s getting to know who you are and designing and living the life you desire; by overcoming your fears and ridding yourself of the mask you created. When you face the world from a place of self-knowledge and courage, nothing is impossible and nothing will hold you back.

~Major Regret~

None. I believe that every experience has honed and shaped me to be the person that I am today. I grew up in apartheid South Africa and was oppressed by the government for the major part of my life. People have told me that this is a great story and that I should use it. I don’t view it as a “cool” story and don’t dwell in the past as the past holds you back. I don’t believe in living life looking in the rear view mirror, but rather living fully in the present and appreciating and embracing what I have now.

~Influential Book~

That Which You Are Seeking Is Causing You to Seek by Cheri Huber made me realize that I no longer needed to go anywhere, do anything, figure anything out or worry about being wrong. This does not imply impassivity, but rather that the answers I sought were not external to me but rather internal. I simplified my life by not worrying about what other people think, stopped comparing myself to others and allowed myself time for pause and reflection. This has given me greater clarity and focus about my life’s purpose (helping people develop personal mastery), and inner peace and joy.

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Author Bio: Avil Beckford, an expert interviewer, entrepreneur and published author is passionate about books and professional development, and that's why she founded The Invisible Mentor and the Virtual Literary World Tour to give you your ideal mentors virtually in the palm of your hands by offering book reviews and book summaries, biographies of wise people and interviews of successful people. Connect with me on Facebook and Twitter.

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