5 Strategic Ways to Make Your Business More Resilient in Uncertain Times

The past few weeks’ stock market gyrations and concern over the coronavirus have made it abundantly clear: bull markets can’t last forever, and change and disruption inevitably come. For years, I’ve studied how we can future-proof our careers (you might like this TEDx talk I did on the subject at TEDxLugano in Switzerland a few years back).

One important element is ensuring our businesses, and business models, are resilient. To be successful long-term, we have to be able to thrive during boom times, as well as recessions. Here are 5 strategies I’ve used to make my own business more resilient in uncertain times – and I hope they can be helpful to you, as well.

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5 Strategic Ways to Make Your Business More Resilient in Uncertain Times

1.    Repurpose what you’re already doing and leverage it further. None of us have the time to create entirely new content for every social channel. Take the things you’re already doing and think about how you can deploy them in other places, with just a shade more effort. (For instance, you can take notes about what you’ve told a client during a coaching session and – after anonymizing, of course - use that as the genesis for an article.)

2.    Preserve optionality - and be willing to pay more for it. Here’s something I haven’t done much in the past, but I’m starting to now. If I have a choice of a hotel room that’s pre-paid where I can save a few bucks, or one I can cancel last-minute that’s more expensive, from now on, I’m happy to pay more. Your plans may be certain – but the universe’s plans may not.

3.    Make sure you have diversified revenue streams. I have one friend who earns more than a million dollars a year, just from professional speaking. It’s an amazing business in boom times – and a terrifying one right now. As I write about in my book Entrepreneurial You, the best career insurance is having multiple income streams so you’re protected in case one of them dries up. Ask yourself: what other products or services could I offer my existing audience?

4.    Create countercyclical elements in your business.  Ask yourself, which of my offerings will be even more popular in recessionary or uncertain times? I’ve offered my Recognized Expert course, which helps professionals learn how to become thought leaders in their field, since 2016. It’s always popular with some people who recognize the importance of branding and building a platform – but even more people will be discovering that once they feel their livelihoods are imperiled and competition is tightening in the market.

5.    Ask yourself: what opportunity does this uncertainty present? It’s easy to look at the downside of uncertainty or recession. The careful plans you’ve carved out are no longer relevant, and it may feel like wasted effort. For instance, this month, I was going to start promoting some in-person events I’m organizing later this year – but pretty much no one is making future travel plans. Instead, I’ve realized this is an opportunity to offer my Recognized Expert course again (mentioned above), which I wasn’t going to do again until the fall – because now is a time when more people will be acutely aware of the need to differentiate themselves in a crowded marketplace. Hopefully I’ll still have time to promote my in-person events later in the year, once travel returns to normal (or at least quasi-normal).

We know intellectually that a crisis is an opportunity – but in the moment, it’s often hard to feel that way. By following these strategies, I hope you can leverage adversity to strengthen your business so it becomes even more successful.

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Dorie Clark is a keynote speaker, marketing strategist, and executive coach who teaches at Duke University’s Fuqua School of Business. She is the author of Reinventing You, Entrepreneurial You, and Stand Out, which was named the #1 Leadership Book of the year by Inc. magazine. Download her free Stand Out self-assessment at dorieclark.com/join.