Nothing is ever wasted

I personally believe nothing is ever wasted. Perhaps it’s the teacher training in me, that taught me to look for the learning in every experience, and reflect on what we can take and discard. It’s likely also the fact that I’ve now had so many different failures along with success, that I can see that sometimes the success has come from the depths of failure. I’d never wish the dark moments on anyone, but I can see how it’s possible to make something good out of it eventually.?

A failed plan wasn’t necessarily a bad plan. Sometimes it’s timing. I’ve lost count of how many business owners I’ve worked with who took a leap or? hard launched a dream business in late 2019, early 2020, and then Covid hit. Whether they shut it down then, pivoted to something left field, or tread water, waiting it all out and hoping they’d last, timing was the reason those businesses suffered.?

Seven years ago we were running a business on the brink of failure. We ended up successfully turning it all around, and now it’s more closely aligned with how I dreamed it would be, but one of the things we did at the outset of rebuilding is sit down and work out our sunk cost limits. How much money, time and energy would we put into the rebuild, and at what level would we shut it all down and walk away? One of our boundaries was we’d not do more personal borrowing against our home. We got very close to that defined limit before things turned around.

I know without a doubt we would have stuck to our agreed limit if we’d had to, and walked away. It would not have meant our time trying to save the business was wasted in any way. We’d just need to replace it with a new plan.?

Hindsight can often help us see where we could have done better, or chosen another path. When I look at the plans I made for our business originally, I can see all the places I went wrong. The worst thing I can do is waste energy ruminating over it all. Instead I take those lessons, and apply them to the next step forward. It helps me make a more robust new plan.?

I’ve also learned the power of being kind to ourselves. We didn’t know what we didn’t know. Our original plan was created with all the information we had on hand at the time, and we made choices we believed were the best ones.?

While some people believe having a back up plan (or an exit strategy if it all falls apart) is a weak move, I find it really good to look at alternative moves for different outcomes. At the moment we’ve got a really clear idea of what we’d like to build on next year. But it’s reliant on some factors currently out of our control.

Part of me just wants to go all in and focus on the most positive outcome. Instead we’ve made numerous plans that take elements of the ideal plan, and reworks them into a new option. As we’ve done that, we’ve also been able to see what the most important features are of the original plan, and what can be discarded if needed. Plan Bs and Cs can help us refine plan A.?

When plans all fall apart, and everything is raw, we sometimes need time to rest, pause and take stock. In those times I’ve learned to be kind to myself, and the people around me who’ve been impacted by the failed plans. I’ll focus on the small things that add a sense of success and achievement into my day. This could be getting dressed (if things are at an all time low), or getting a walk and some nutritious food in, right up to getting essential home and work tasks completed.

In the early days of a failed business venture, it’s hard to see past it. Our businesses often become entwined with our personal identity. It can impact our emotional, financial, and mental well being. It can involve people we love and care about.?

All of this is hard and terrible. It’s understandable we’d be resistant to seeing any good in the mess.?

If we can focus on the incredible power of resilience, there can be room for future success. A huge part of that for me has been learning to understand that success comes from also experiencing failure. That there’s often many failed plans on the way to reading the big goals.?

This helps me to reset, trust myself to make a new plan, and push through to start building again.?

Where are you with your plans right now??

Rachel

PS: If you’re resetting your business, and need help getting the new plans organised with a strategy marketing plan and the actions you’ll need to make it happen - let’s talk.