The Naming of the Year 2021

The naming of the year is a long-standing tradition with TeleReach Corporate which we began around the turn of the millennium. Often, I have said that I do not choose the name of the year. The name of the year chooses me, or more precisely, the name of the year chooses the company. Each year, we hold a brief ceremony to unveil the naming of the year in the first week of January.

The name of the year 2021 is The Year of Positive Synergy.

There’s an old African proverb that says – If you want to go fast, go alone. If you want to go far, go together. Going far together, that’s synergy. As always, I look forward to the promised land of the new year and never more than the days ahead of us in 2021.

A faithful guide.

In reflecting on the aftermath of 2020, I see that the name of the past year served me well throughout the year as a faithful friend and guide through such strangely turbulent times of uncertainty. I don’t know about you, but to me, sometimes it felt surreal, like I was out of my body watching a movie. The year 2020 gave me a new perspective on the naming of the year. It was different for 2020 than ever before and took on new meaning. As the usual winds of change turned into a full force storm, the name of the year helped me to feel more grounded and make better decisions at a time when the world seemed to be mainly falling apart.

The business experience of 2020 reminds me of a trip I took with my husband years ago when, for some reason, we decided to drive straight through from Houston to Los Angeles. Somehow, it was my turn to drive the six-hour shift from midnight to 6 a.m. which was from El Paso, Texas to Phoenix, Arizona. The road was desolate and dark. There were no lights on that long stretch of road and very few other cars. There was no moon out that night. I was tired and I could not see very well. My husband was asleep.

I think of the name of the year like that road. I was not able to see very far in front of me but I had faith that the road would be there. I just kept driving, and when I got a few more feet, I could see the road that I couldn’t see before. That’s how we made it to Phoenix and that’s how we made it through 2020, however, I would like not to repeat either one of those experiences again.

The name of the year 2020 was the year of mastery. As with all other years, the name of the year came true. I don’t want to say anything good about COVID, however, our company accomplished some important goals during that strange time that otherwise had been difficult for us to accomplish in previous years. We even set a new company production record.

What is synergy?

What is synergy and why do we want more? Synergy is broadly, combined action or operation. Synergy is a mutually advantageous conjunction or compatibility of distinct business participants or elements such as resources or efforts. There are many types of synergy such as revenue, cost, or financial synergies.

Examples of synergy.

We’ve benefited from many positive synergies through the years. For example, in the early days of the company and for many years, we shared office space with a sales training company. The sales training company used a large room for their training and we used the large room for our meetings and training. The sales training company had clients that needed lead generation to support their sales forces and our lead generation company had clients that needed sales training. That relationship is an excellent example of synergy. Both companies had cost savings by sharing space and both companies had increased revenues because their respective client base was complementary to each other’s services.

Examples of synergy we are looking for are relationships and opportunities that complement our existing infrastructure, systems or technology. A genius example of synergy is Disney’s purchase of Pixar. Disney uses their theme parks to promote their movies, and they use their movies to promote their theme parks. Another example is going to see a Disney movie and then having your kids receive Disney merchandise in their happy meal at McDonalds.

We supported an event which was a manufacturing conference. The multiple sponsors of the event represented an excellent example of synergy. All of the sponsoring companies had manufacturing companies as part of their client base. All companies benefited from combining their marketing efforts.

Self-fulfilling prophecy.

The name of the year is a self-fulfilling prophecy. The naming of the year is a kind of conceptual roadmap that helps us make decisions, gives us focus and unifies. Like that road to Phoenix, we may not be able to instantly see and know all that is there in front of us on the road ahead, but we do know it’s there. In moving forward with 2021, the name of the year – The Year of Positive Synergy – will help us to see synergistic opportunities with fresh eyes and expanded perspective. We wish you a prosperous new year filled with all good things. Happy New Year!