Surviving the times :

My mobile phone usually rings around 12 to 40 times a day, a combination of sales calls, potential clients, the team getting in touch with questions, contractors, I could go on all day. But now, well right now, my phone has barely rang in over a fortnight. Don’t get me wrong, the amount of times I have moaned about the phone ringing, the amount of comments I’ve had from my family about the phone ringing, but right now.. its sitting next to me, doing anything but ringing and what I wouldn’t give to go back to some kind of normality. How much I would like the phone to ring again…

It has raised questions though… Why did my phone ring so much, was it luck? What it good judgement? What makes one business seem to grow and others struggle. What makes the phone ring…

I have been thinking about my plan for after this time period is over. What steps I will need to take to move my business and our company forward and by forward, I really mean get it back off the starting blocks all over again.

Its super important to have learn from this unprecedented situation, and one lesson I have learnt from this is to set up a pot of money as an ‘in case of emergency.’ The money that really is for a rainy day to ensure sure that in the good economic times and the bad, you are prepared for what might happen. A lesson you were probably told as a child and in life generally, this absolutely should apply to your business!

I will be making networking a top priority. Staying in the minds eye of your clients, your potential clients and building a network around you really lifts your credibility. Your network needs to be diverse, strong and it is important to remember that your network wont catch every single post you write or thoughts your share, so share with your network and encourage them to share it further to give it and you the best chance to be seen. Networking is about increased reach, added value, becoming bigger than the sum of your own parts, so take full advantage of what you can create.

Diversify your income streams. If you are an independent contractor then work for multiple clients. Cross industry sectors and spread your risk. If one source of income or clients dry up, you have others to fall back on. Broaden your customer base, expand your products and services. Leverage your risk as you don’t want to rely on the success of one client for the success of your company.

Set your stall out early as an industry expert. You cant claim this without doing the work though… so know your market and your industry and value collective wisdom. I accept now that my thoughts and ideas may not always be the best option, listen to others and incorporate their thoughts when making decisions. You need your clients and potential clients to trust you, to come to you and for you to be differentiated from the hundreds of other providers offering similar products or services. Be a leader, don’t follow the trends or the norm and remember that to be a leader is a gift and not just a title.

I can see now that you need to be yourself and share who that is. This is about business but that doesn’t mean there isn’t a place to be human, that’s what makes us all different after all! There can be 10 Chefs, all Chefs and all have earned there title and their position, but why select one in particular? So be anecdotal and stay authentic!

Be entrepreneurial, you have probably already had to overcome adversity, I know I have so far and surmounting difficulties in life encourages us to build character and resilience, to grow our strengths, understand and manage our weaknesses. Be self-reliant and adapt, there is no better time than now to change your way of thinking, it is a chance to change direction, every business goes through cycles and if you don’t reinvent yourself occasionally, it is hard to stay relevant. See this opportunity as exactly that. Take risks and be brave. You will have needed this before to even get started so be prepared to follow this mantra once again.

The point of this blog is to make the phone ring again and whilst noting these points its worth saying to not be to hard on yourself whilst the phone doesn’t ring, rest. refuel and re-evaluate. Then be ready as the phone will ring again….