And with each passing year, the world changes at a quicker and quicker rate. Sometimes, these changes benefit business – other times, they don’t. Remember that a good chunk of the world wants to see you fail.
Especially in the turbulent times we’ve experienced, what three things do you need to push through adversity?
Mindset
Adopt this mindset immediately – Change is normal – I repeat, change is normal! You probably made a big change when starting your business. Each change, whether good or bad, always provides an opportunity.
Do you think 2020 provided some huge opportunities amidst challenges?
The companies that grew during this period saw it as a chance to grow. The ones that died likely operated in fear and ended up losing control. Face any challenge directly. You will either break through or break down – give yourself the best chance to break through.
Additionally, any time a challenge arises, expand your thinking instead of shutting options down. The best leaders leverage their team to come up with ideas that they hadn’t thought of.
Plan
Planning for the next disaster isn’t fun. But knowing that you will find positives in it will make creating the plan easier. A proper Business Continuity and Disaster Recovery (BC/DR) plan will ensure that you always have a chance at recovery.
Business continuity plans are often proactive in nature. They include strategies and mechanisms to ensure that a business can continue to operate in the face of future obstacles.
The methods and procedures that an organization must follow to get back on track after an “event,” are known as disaster recovery.
The disaster recovery plan gets everything back up and running, from IT to hardware failures and everything else that could be impacted by a company-wide incident. You must stay relatively broad with this plan – and that’s intentional. Include practically everything that may put you out of business.
I remember a very cool startup company back in college that clearly did not create this plan. They grew rapidly, but their core offering required in-person networking. The pandemic instantly made their business obsolete. Talk about a learning lesson – all the hard work went to waste for their founders.
Drop the Ego
Most people don’t like asking for help – especially the “self-starter” types. You will, however, burn out quickly if you repeatedly bite off more than you can chew.
Knowing when to set your ego aside is one of the keys to overcoming hardship as a business owner. Asking for help might “humiliate” or “annoy” you. However, you’ll often discover that those uncomfortable emotions feel worse in your own mind. It will feel a lot easier when you actually do it. And the benefits will certainly outweigh the risks!
Get rid of that “I know” mentality when dealing with your team and partners. Instead, switch your brain to say, “isn’t that interesting?”
I’m sorry to bring you bad news, but you will absolutely, completely, 100% confront hardship in your entrepreneurial endeavors. Accepting this as fact is one of the easiest ways to prepare.
You’ll be far on your way to being more prepared if you accept that things will get rough and that you’ll need to draw on your inner strength and external resources.
Need the ultimate guidance and accountability to prepare for upcoming hardship? Get connected with a business coach. The vast majority of ActionCOACH clients grew their businesses during COVID.
Start the conversation here or at our upcoming GrowthCLUB event next Friday, March 11th – spots are filling up fast!
