The world in which our parents and grandparents grew up bears little resemblance to the world we live in today. Clinging to radios and eventually the family television, the previous two generations witnessed many firsts and rare events: the moon landing, the Great Depression, the assassination of John F. Kennedy, Charles Lindbergh successfully making the first transatlantic flight, launching Russia's Sputnik satellites into space, passing the Civil Rights Act, expanding voting rights globally, and much more.

After the Second World War and the expansion of the mechanisms and technology, companies throughout the First World were well funded and saw tremendous growth. They knew where their goods and services came from, and when there were minor disruptions, they knew which levers to pull to get things back on track. In turn, households can reasonably rely on goods and services reaching them.

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It is no longer clear what lever to pull

It doesn't matter where we call home; what we experience is extraordinary and unprecedented. Disputed elections, global conflicts that seem to strike out of nowhere, increasing frequency and intensity of natural disasters, AI generated images (surprisingly, many of them are polydactyls) and planes carrying military personnel or world politicians shot out of the sky are just some of the events unfolding on the world stage before our eyes.

We are very used to (maybe even used to) phrases like new normal, terrorist attacks, telehealth, remote work, zoom fatigue, the #MeToo movement, arguments over bodily autonomy, the economic downturn, and hyperinflation. With this new reality and expanded vocabulary comes a deepening divide between people and civil unrest.

Some might argue that access is part of the problem. News, in all its current forms, harks back to the days of William Randolph Heart's famous quote, “If it bleeds, it leads.” Our parents' and grandparents' viewing experiences were shorter (TV used to be turned off at midnight and there weren't many channels) and more filtered, allowing them to get their first but not consume them like we do today. .

Social media platforms and the 24-hour news cycle bombard us throughout the day with images depicting horrors and atrocities designed to shock and awe. Psychology today believes we all need a break from the constant barrage because our mental health is suffering. However, minimizing viewing time will not change the realities of our new normal.

Whether these events happen “out there” or happen “very close to home” due to our interconnectedness and accessibility, these shared moments and the resulting ripple effects are experienced by all of us across our vast planet.

If world leaders and heads of organizations large and small are challenged to manage these upheavals with confidence, the anxiety experienced by the rest of us intensifies. Given the monkey wrenches thrown into our daily lives, it's no wonder that predictability and decision-making are aspects of our life governance that we can no longer reasonably rely on.

Regardless of our personal or professional circumstances, supply chain disruptions, cyber security threats, economic instability and worse interfere with our daily lives. Our ability to “bounce back” isn't what it used to be. According to Pew Researchthe middle class, historically the backbone of society, shrank from 61% in 1971 to 50% by 2012.

Instead of sweeping these challenges under the rug, corporations are choosing to be more transparent with customers and stakeholders. Given these challenges, the levers used to pull governments, organizations, and families that were once available to us are no longer workable, leaving us all feeling anxious and fearful, hindering the decision-making process.

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Using moments for better decision making

Most of my career has been spent observing people who follow a lot defiant, even dire circumstances. I started my career in financial services, managing portfolios of high net worth clients.

When Merrill Lynch sold its international interests after the tragic events of September 11, 2001, I took a very unusual turn working overseas in Indonesia, Ukraine and Jordan as a political consultant. My final deployment was to Iraq during (not after) the Second Gulf War. My reasons for being in those places could not have prepared me for how much I would change and be affected by my environment.

Deployment after deployment, I noticed a common theme repeated over and over. Regardless of the losses that people experienced: the loss of limbs, homes and family members – instead of retreating, without exception, every person rose to the occasion and looked for ways to rebuild and thrive. In these “moments,” I recognized a universal truth: leaders step out and inspire others to do the same.

I witnessed firsthand that after the worst days of their lives, they moved on, mustering the strength, resilience, purpose, and courage to thrive, rebuild, and find that way forward.

In these moments, I saw extraordinary and sometimes superhuman responses to dire circumstances. I witnessed empathy and determination, unlike anything I've been involved in before or since. I've come to call these moments Optimize the Moment™.

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I share many of these moments, case studies, and results of the steps I take to become mission-oriented and based on sensitivity in my new one book, From war zones to boardrooms: Optimize when strategic planning fails.

Today, I am a strategic consultant for Fortune 100 companies and other large organizations. In my role – advising them on day-to-day operations and helping them manage crises – I find countless opportunities to incorporate Optimize the Moment. By recognizing and acting at critical moments, all of us, from world leaders to corporate executives and individuals, can redefine missions, assemble effective teams, and achieve success—even in a real crisis.