I recently heard someone say the phrase “It’s like we are building a plane while trying to fly it” in reference to this nationwide issue. I immediately wrote it down because I thought it was just so profound. It’s such a simple phrase but has so much meaning and truth behind it.
Small businesses now more than ever are in very tough situations. And there seems to be two trains of thought that most people are falling into. One being the people who think nothing is going right, that all these problems are other people’s faults and they can’t possibly have anything good happen until things go back to normal. The second train of thought is that of those who are using this time to figure out how they can bring some “normal” back into their lives and businesses their selves. They know things aren’t perfect, but they have accepted the situation they are in and are working to find ways around it.
Now, I do know that there are “fence-sitters” hanging somewhere in the middle of these two thought trains, but as my mentor always says, it’s either a red light or a green light. You don’t want to be stuck in the middle of the two, because that’s like staying in the middle of an intersection with cars coming at you and you’re just sitting there. Not a good place to hang out.
What we all have in common, no matter what your state of mind is, is that our businesses have taken a hit. Our “plane” has crashed, but we need to get it back up into the air. Any ideas you’ve thought of or have wanted to bring to life in the past, now is the time to execute them. There isn’t time to be afraid or worry whether or not they will work, we just have to do them and figure things out along the way.
We can choose to stay in our comfort zones, paralyzed by fear and hoping that someone will come save us, or we can choose to be brave and dive into something we’ve never done before and possibly succeed. Complaining about how awful of a situation you are in is a waste of your own time that could be spent bettering yourself and your business.
There are three “zones” that people filter through in times like these. The first “zone” is fear. This is where a lot of people start out and unfortunately never leave. They let their own fears and worries control their lives and they shrink down and give up. The second “zone” is action. Once people move past what scares them, they can begin to put things into action to get them in the right direction. However, people can get stuck here, too. Maybe they put a plan into motion but it doesn’t work how they wanted it to, so they give up or just start throwing random things out into the world with their fingers crossed. The third “zone” is that of growth. This is where we all want to be or get back to. But we must first push through the first two “zones” to reach this growth.
To be able to take yourself from a place of fear to a place of action and finally reach that growth you want to achieve, communication is an essential tool. Communicate what you are doing to everyone around you: your leadership team, your staff, but also your customers and your community. When everyone has an idea of what’s going on, things tend to move along more swiftly and smoothly. We as people have way more control over our futures than we think we do. It’s a matter of getting creative with what you’ve got, putting a plan in place, and not being afraid to take a leap of faith on your ideas.
If you rely only on the government to bail you out, or on others to just tell you exactly how to do things, than what is the point in having a business? The point of being an entrepreneur is being able to navigate through any adversity with your own creativity and ideas that you bring to the table. Not to shut down the second things get hairy, or to curl up in a ball and cry for help. You take a situation at face value and figure out a way around, or even through it. Build your plane to take you where you want to go, not where someone is telling you to go.
The times we are in right now are tough, no doubt, but it is possible to keep your business afloat if you think outside the box a little. Look at things differently and take new perspectives on life. You might be surprised at what you come up with. Being afraid is okay, we all get to that point at times, but the key is using your fear to move yourself forward instead of letting it keep you stuck in place.
Don’t forget to take advantage of my FREE download, 10 Tips Towards Massive Growth, to learn how to jump-start your business to get back on it’s track towards success.
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Episode 58 – Looking for the Lessons in Adversity
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