In the Future of Management, author Gary Hamel said, “A turnaround is a transformation past due.”

Certainly, this statement has rung true as so many businesses are failing and laying people off, showing a lack of resilience. Our leaders are strategically challenged. They focus on improving current processes for short term gain instead of continually making the changes that prepare their organizations for the future.

Yet this statement also rings true for us on a personal level. If you are facing crisis in your life right now, consider what changes you should have made a long time ago. Make note of these now so you can prepare yourself for the future. Success means facing new challenges each year, not the same ones.

This is especially true for high-achieving women. We are confident in our abilities and comfortable with who we are. Yet being comfortable doesn’t always prepare us for the future. We have to be willing to change the very essence of who we think we are as the world changes around us.

Take a moment to define who you are as a leader, a business woman, a mother and a friend. Now, when you have a quiet moment to vision yourself in the future, take a moment to define the transformation you want to make.

My favorite daydream is making my transition from being a “strong, powerful woman” to being a “woman of strength, wisdom and grace.” I’m working on it. What about you? Please share your vision as a comment on this blog so we can together envision a future empowered by the voices of fabulous women.