In times like these, it’s hard not to let your emotions show or allow them to play tricks on you, especially with the situation consuming every media channel there is.
We know that this situation will not last forever. It will end, we just don’t know when. We all hope that it will be quick with the minimum amount of pain possible.
However, we all have a choice here … you can choose the glass that’s half full, or you can choose the glass that’s half empty.
You can choose to see this situation as devastating (and I’m very mindful that some businesses have had to shut their doors and there’s a chance they may not reopen, and we are also experiencing many job losses both locally and internationally that is impacting families). Or, you can look at this time as an opportunity to reinvent yourself and/or your business.
I’ve been talking about this situation being unprecedented times for business, however I’m wrong for saying this.
When you think back, for the business world, it’s not the first time that devastation has occurred. I’m talking about when the internet arrived and closed many bricks and mortar stores that couldn’t see how they could adapt. How about when streaming began and therefore the demand for video stores stopped.
Granted, this extraordinary situation has happened suddenly, it’s shocking and its unknown which makes people anxious and fearful.
But what about the opportunity that this time may present?
What if this situation, whilst putting us through some interim stress and pain, put us in a much better position to come out the other end?
I don’t know about you, but this week, I feel the hype of everything has settled a little.
We’ve all been so focused on being reactive, as this is what’s been needed to survive the rapid change that has occurred.
Being reactive will still be required for a while, but there’s now the time and opportunity to start thinking about the future.
We spent our week looking at what’s needed now to ensure we can serve our clients, but a lot of time was spent looking at what the ‘new world’ is going to look like at the end and what this means for our clients moving forward.
The reality is that not everything will be the same. The world has changed, so in order to survive, we need to learn from this experience, pivot/change and ensure we grow from this experience.
If you’re just coming up for air, here’s some questions for you to ponder:
- How can we pivot/change to get through this? (many businesses are already doing this, eg; putting a face to face business online such as gyms, etc)
- How can/will we do what we do differently?
- What will our clients and market need and want when we come out of this? Will it still be the same or will it look different?
- Are there additional products/services you can add to make your business more diverse?
- Are there other businesses that you can form a partnership with (those with complimentary products or services)?
- Will my business structure still look the same?
- Will the roles in my business still look the same?
- Will my business still operate the same or do I need to make some changes to help us unsure that next time something drastic happens, we are better set up to handle/manage it?
- Do I need to review my people policies and procedures?
- How do I engage my team and get them involved in this?
- remember, two or more heads are always better than one and sometimes a fresh perspective yields amazing things!
- Ask your team what’s worked well and what could be done differently in this situation
- Ask them what ideas they have, etc – engagement is super important right now!
- Observe who may show some great leadership potential during these difficult times
- What training can I or my team do to build our skills and knowledge whilst things are quieter? (there are loads of free stuff out there – YouTube, etc)
Personally, I don’t do well with constant negativity. Yes, we’ve been majorly impacted what’s occurred. Yes, there’s lots of stress and pressure, but I’m choosing to be solution focused as opposed to problem focused. I’m choosing to channel my energy into spending my time making my business stronger for the future.
So, what will you do?
