02 Apr Survival Steps Your Business Needs To Take During a Pandemic
The past few weeks have been challenging for many businesses all across the country – especially small businesses. While the pandemic takes a toll on the economy, it is important that you take a proactive approach to keep your business afloat. Resilience, adaptability and following these business survival steps will keep you headed in a sustainable direction despite the onslaught of new challenges.
Surrender the Outcome
Surrendering the outcome is not about giving up. It is about letting go of the things outside your control and focusing instead on what you can control. It is impossible to predict the timing on when businesses will reopen, when funding will be available from the government or how clients will respond to cancellation policies. You can control how you approach and respond to this crisis, to cutting business expenses, to regularly communicating with your team and customer base. By shifting your mindset and surrounding the outcome, you will be able to focus on actionable solutions you can implement.
Keep Things in a Single File Line
It is incredibly easy to become overwhelmed as you look at your business and the challenges you face as a whole. Hone in on the smaller obstacles that you need to overcome, and attack one task at a time. This will help you avoid spinning out of control, creating even more anxiety or freezing up entirely. This also keeps you from projecting and planning too far into an uncertain future and making decisions based on what might happen. One step at a time.
Know Your Financial Situation
Be realistic with yourself in terms of your business’s finances. You need to know the ins and outs of your current financial standpoint to make the right decisions to protect viability. Map out the next three months of revenue vs. expenses as well as your current accounts payable & receivable as well as noting cash on hand, available credit and options to liquidate or make cuts. This will better help you understand where and to what degree you may need to cut expenses, in which areas you can save, or when to liquidate where it makes sense.
Be Honest with Your Team
There is no beating around the bush; transparency is key with your staff. Talk to your team candidly about where your business stands during this time and what problems it is facing. Encourage them to play a role in the solution and let them know that you welcome all of their ideas and input. And don’t wait around, allowing them to panic, feel discouraged or make assumptions. You need to create a unified ship in a time a crisis and you do that with regular communication.
Diversify Your Income by Finding New Problems
Our job as business owners and leaders is to solve problems. There are plenty of problems right now; they are just not the ones you are used to solving. Look for ways you can shift your skills and offerings to solve the essential problems facing people now. This may require you to get more creative than simply shifting your business online – repackaging services or shifting to a different target market. Loads of opportunity have and will come from this challenge so be proactive about pivoting to new sales funnels and offerings. Need some help here? We have new marketing kits that got you covered.
Maintain Self Care
Your business needs you most for its survival. With all of the stress and worries you are facing in your business and personal life, it is important to set aside time for self-care. You simply cannot pour from an empty cup. Whatever helps you feel refreshed or re-energized, do it. If that means a nap, meditation or movement, set aside the necessary time and make it happen. You will come back to a problem with a clear head and a better ability to come up with a solution.
Remember, success is not about the number of resources you have available. It’s about how resourceful you are with them.
My team and I are here to show you how to get resourceful and adapt – building new sales funnels, online shops and pivoting to solving new problems. Get in touch with us here to get started.