Tips and Tools for Small Business Leaders March 2020
From Denial to Anger and Beyond: The Predictable Behaviors During Crisis and How to Manage Them
Just read a Facebook exchange between some people we love. They were arguing, and not too politely, whether more people will die from the shutdowns than from the virus.
Yesterday the guy running the quality inspection room at a manufacturer posted a sign that no one was allowed into “his room.” Instead they were to put all items on a chair outside his door. This caused a backlash from his co-workers.
Beginning to notice people getting irritated a little more quickly? These are not uncommon behaviors. In fact, they’re
predictable.
We’ve moved from the 1st stage of crisis reaction, Denial, in which we are shocked and hope the crisis goes away. We’re well into the 2nd stage, Anger. In the Anger stage we’ll see more, well, anger. This is when people become openly frustrated and confused. They question leadership’s wisdom more than ever, become territorial, over-complicate things, and worse, start questioning themselves… “Can I do this? Can I make it through this?”
Turning the anger on others and ourselves paves the way into the 3rd stage, Depression. Some of us have already reached this stage. The depression is
accompanied by a sense of helplessness and an inability to self-motivate. This can lead to an inability to function and paralysis in some folks.
The good news is that these reactions are predictable. They follow a pattern. If we can recognize where we are, and where others are, we can more successfully move ourselves through the stages. And that’s the goal—to move yourself and those you lead through the stages as quickly as possible. (Don’t skip a stage or you’ll wind up having to go through it later).
Click here to read our eWhitepaper “10 Ways Small Business Leaders Can Lead During Change and Crisis” and find out how to move yourself and others through the “crisis curve.”
Top 10 Tips for Your Small Business Strategic Plan
We recently read an article that said a small business strategic plan is a a waste of time.
We say “how can you possibly know where your small business needs to go if you don’t have a strategic direction?”
There is amazing confidence that comes from the sure knowledge that what you are doing today will get your small business where you want it to be.
In honor of our small business’ 10-year anniversary, we’re sharing our top 10 ways to create a small business strategic plan.
Hundreds of small business owners have used these to create a small business strategic plan.
Click here to read the top 10 ways to create YOUR company’s strategic plan.
Upcoming Events
Growth Plan Workshop
Join Us to Update or Create Your Small Business Plan
June 25, 2020 9-3 pm
Discover the potential in your business by completing a 1-Page Strategic Plan. Then break it into quarterly,
monthly, weekly,& daily goals, getting a line-of-sight from daily tasks to your 10-30 year purpose. Step out of the day-to-day business for just 1 day, get organized, complete a prescribed planning process, and walk away with an action plan that leads to greater profits and free time back. Get more out of your business in the next 90 days than you ever thought possible!
Holiday Inn Indianapolis Airport 8555 Stansted Road, Indianapolis 46241
Geared toward owners & leaders of small to medium sized businesses. Bring your 2nd-in-command or your whole leadership team!
You Don’t Have to Lead Through This Alone
Join us for our Crisis Leadership for Small Business webinar and talk with other small business experts about current events, challenges you’re facing and how to minimize the negative impact. Or schedule a crisis coaching session with one of our Inspire Results business coaches free of charge.
It’s possible to stay open, function, and emerge stronger on the other side and we are here to help you manage your business through it all.
Crisis Leadership for Small Business webinarswill
occur every Friday from 9-10 a.m. EST.
Goal for Small Business:Survive without Damaging Your Future
By Chad Blacklock, Inspire Results Business Coach and Brad Justus, Inspire Results Business Coach
Going into survival mode is the name of the game now. It’s better than closing your doors which can damage or even end your prospects for the future. It may mean pausing or slowing down. What can you do to keep your business
afloat in the next 2 weeks? Our best thinking today is…
Hold on to any cash you have.
Assess which bills must be paid and which can be put off. Make a list of essential bills, mainly those bound by contract. These need to be paid first. Hold off as long as possible on non-essential bills.
Call your bank and try to negotiate special terms, such as pausing payments for 3 months or lower payments now in exchange for higher payments later. Many lending institutions are already offering things like principle deferrals, interest deferrals, and restructuring your loan.
Draw on lines of credit but do it sparingly and strategically.
If you can get one of low-interest SBA disaster loans, it’s worthwhile to do it. It’s always good to have a low-interest loan. Though it will show up as a liability it will also show up as cash on your books. In a Facebook live meeting yesterday presented by the Madison County Chamber of Commerce, Susan Brooks, congresswoman from IN, stated on the call that there was discussion in senate committee meetings that SBA loans might be turned into “grants” in some situations and after a certain period of time. Details of that plan were still being worked through, but if this is included in the final relief package it would be huge.
Assess what other assets are available to you. For instance, schedule an appraisal now on a piece of equipment in case you want to sell it or do the same for your building in preparation to get a loan against the building equity,
Reduce payroll to only key difficult-to-replace team members and even consider asking them to reduce hours or pay temporarily. It’s horrible to lay people off. You can let them know how horrible you feel and let them know things like “if we get gov’t assistance (or we get back on our feet) we’ll bring you back as quickly as we possibly can.”
This is a difficult one BUT at the end of the day, if you can survive, at least some of your employees will have livelihoods and you’ll be in position to bring back the others later.
Try out a business coach!Schedule a free call with a certified Indiana business coach.
It's lonely at the top... business owners need someone to bounce
ideas off of. Inspire Results Business Coaches are known for practical solutions and quick answers to your real-world issues in real-time.
You’ll hang up with a solution...and you may get ideas for how to get the most out of your business and your life!
