No, that is not my EKG after walking up hills in San Francisco when I last visited my daughter. 😏
The above graph represents the search trend Google recorded for the word, ‘recession,’ over the past 5 years.
I’d say it’s trending up. < /sarcasm >
You’ve probably noticed brands and marketers referring to a downturn or to living in ‘uncertain times.’ There was an especially noticeable uptick during the height of the pandemic and it hasn’t ended.
I don’t fault my fellow marketers for latching onto such a convenient hook, but seriously, trying to agitate entrepreneurs with the ‘uncertain times’ hook is like throwing Br’er Rabbit into the briar patch.
As entrepreneurs we are always living in uncertain times… and often thriving through uncertainty.
Those who have processes and systems in place to manage uncertainty and the anxiety that often follows it around have a huge advantage.
We have developed what I call radical resilience. And, this resilience means we’re better prepared to weather the peaks and troughs associated with owning a business.
Fortunately, resilience doesn’t require decades of experience, gobs of cash, or influencer status.
You and your business can do more than just make it through extraordinarily tough times – you can thrive. If you’re newish to this whole entrepreneur thing… here are some ways to build a more resilient business.
🚀 🚀 🚀 Improve your personal and business financial health by reducing expenses, paying off debt, and implementing a risk mitigation plan.
Need an iron clad contract? Now’s the time to consult a professional rather than using the copy and paste job you downloaded from another freelancer.
Worried about having to refund a project fee to the new client who is requesting that 10th revision on a project that went out of scope 8 revisions ago? Time to look into professional liability insurance if you don’t already have that taken care of. (We’ll talk about observing boundaries later!)
🚀 🚀🚀 Set contingency plans so you know your next step if leads dry up, if projects end abruptly, or if you get sick and can’t work.
Rehearse what you will say in sticky situations so you can be more confident in the moment.
Play, ‘what if,’ to come up with scenarios you might need to navigate and jot down a quick plan to help you act more quickly when the unexpected happens.
🚀🚀🚀 Take care of your emotional and physical health because extraordinary times often call for extraordinary effort and you need to feel up to the task.
Hustle when you have to. Rest when you need to.
If a spouse or partner carrying insurance from an employer is worried about pending layoffs, get eyes, teeth, body, and brain cared for in the event there’s a lapse in health insurance.
🚀🚀🚀 Build your authority and visibility to make it more likely you will be top of mind when someone asks for a referral.
You don’t have to be a household name – just top of mind with enough people to respond in that next Twitter post asking for a referral to someone who is good at exactly what you do.
🚀🚀🚀 Engage more with followers, subscribers, and community members so you are sitting pretty on the know, like, and trust factors.
When wallets start to close, you might not have to work quite as hard as a competitor if you have already built a rapport with your audience.
🚀🚀🚀 Create a solid lead acquisition process and work to actively fill your pipeline. Don’t create a great lead magnet and wait for subscribers to find you.
Promote your work. Drive traffic to your opt-in page.
Distribute your content and then distribute it again.
🚀🚀🚀 Finally, remain curious. Explore. Learn. Discover new ways to solve old problems. Find the gaps you can fill for customers and ideal buyers. Then, fill them.
And… these suggestions are just to get you started.
I’ve been an entrepreneur for more than 35 years and I’ve learned a lot the hard way. My goal is to save you that same trouble by sharing what I know.
So, stay tuned and check back frequently for more tips and guidance on making your life as an entrepreneur a little easier.