I think we can all agree 2020 has been a year of disruption. Small businesses are feeling it more than ever. The challenge for small business owners is the “Where do we go from here?” It is time to move past the gloom and doom and look forward to surviving and thriving. Building business resiliency is one way to do this.
What is Resilience?
Resilience. [ ri-zil-yuhns, -zil-ee-uhns ] the ability of a system or organization to respond to or recover readily from a crisis, disruptive process, etc.
How do you apply Resilience to your business?
Don’t you find it interesting that they do not teach Business Resiliency Skills in Business School? I feel like it is one of the more important parts to build. Creating resiliency in your business will help you survive long term during times of disruption, sleep better at night, and help you overcome short term challenges.
What can we learn from 2020?
How to better prepare for the next thing, build our bricks of resiliency? I think we can all agree there will be a next thing sometime (hopefully not in the near future) and just think if you can survive during a pandemic, imagine how you can soar when there isn’t one.
5 parts to Building Resiliency. Part 1
#1 Vision Leadership –
Now more than ever your employees need to feel like they are part of the equation, part of the solution, needed for the company to succeed. In order to make them feel that way, they need to know where the company is going. What if you are a one-man band and do not have employees?? Keep reading!
What is Vision leadership?
Vision Leadership is sharing the big picture with your staff, the where are we going theme. Does this mean they need to know every facet of your business? No, but they need to understand where the company is going and most importantly the Why! As a result, being transparent builds trust and trust creates dedicated employees who will go above and beyond when the times get tough.
How to get started implementing Vision Leadership
Hold weekly short meetings: Share your goals for the week and that word again, the why. All of us want to know why we are doing something! Do you know your Why?
Stay positive – even if you are unsure yourself right now, they need to look to you for hope not fear. One suggestion for you personally is to start a gratitude journal about your business. Write down 3-5 things a day you are grateful for and this will help YOU stay positive so you can share with others.
Solicit ideas – Allow your employees to be a part of the solutions and ask for their input; after all most of them are on the front lines every day, they have great ideas, how often are you asking for them? Do they feel comfortable even sharing the riskiest ideas? I am not saying every idea they have is reasonable, feasible or something you can implement but at least create an environment where sharing any idea no matter how whacky is welcomed. Soliciting ideas from your employees creates diversity in your business and solutions.
Be Active – live it, breathe it, make vision leadership part of your culture. This is different than your company’s mission statement. A mission statement are the pillars you have built your business on, Vision Leadership is sharing your vision, your perception of where you are going, the goal you have placed (even short term) and how you will get there and why it is important to go there.
Would you make a meal with out a recipe? Think for a minute it is time for dinner and your spouse says “lets make Beef Stroganoff”. You say okay great, I have never made it, let’s do it. You then get in your car and immediately head to the store. You find yourself in the store and start placing random ingredients. You get home, place all the ingredients on the counter and think now what? Where do we go from here? Sure, we can wing it, throw a few things together or we can follow someone’s vision of an awesome Beef Stroganoff and follow the recipe, step by step. Just think how much time and money we would have saved if only we would have looked at the recipe first.
You wouldn’t jump into creating a new meal with out a recipe, so why do so many entrepreneurs jump into fixing a problem without a plan, a vision?
Solo entrepreneurs….how do you spin it?
- Set time each week to look at your why, your goals for the week and plan to get there.
- Take time daily to gratitude journal to keep your positivity up, when you focus on what is right, it is amazing how you start to see opportunity, not defeat.
- Solicit ideas and be active with your customers. Have you surveyed your customers lately? Maybe now is the time to do so.
- Create a vision board or motivational quotes and sayings where you can see them every day.
- Surround yourself with other business owners that can help you stay focused on your goals!
I specialize in helping entrepreneurs see the big picture while creating small steps to get there. Need someone to run along side you? Find out how you can build resiliency in your business?
Reach out and let’s discuss personalized resiliency strategies for YOUR business!
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Check back to future blogs to discuss the next steps of Creating Resiliency in Your Business
A key part of staying resilient during turbulent times is having Employees running right alongside you during the crisis, however, like everyone, they want to know where they are going!
