If you want your business to survive a crisis, you must take action. Hopefully you have already taken action before the crisis and planned for the future. If you haven’t, you must start now. A positive attitude is important. Whenever a disaster happens, whether it be Covid 19 or Cyclone Harold or a personal disaster, the one thing we know is that at some time it will pass, and if we can stay positive, we are helping ourselves to survive and come out the other side stronger. At the moment, running a small business must feel like a really hard thing to do. A business owner’s head is full of questions like, where are my customers coming from, how will I pay the bills, how do I keep paying your employees, how do I pay my rent? If you are in the tourism business, it must feel especially tough. If you are facing these challenges, you are not alone. When any crisis hits, everyone behaves in different ways. Some people panic and are frightened, others bury their heads in the sand and hope it will just go away, some blame others, some try to carry on as usual, and some take action. It is natural to be confused when disaster strikes and do not know what do, but running round in circles is not the same as taking useful action! You will feel tired but make no progress. So, what should be done first? Follow these few steps:
Please contact me with your own experiences and comments and with any specific questions you would like me to deal with in future articles. Business advisors have seen many examples of businesses, good and bad, and precisely because they outsiders and do not have prior knowledge of your business, they can be objective and provide impartial advice on the strengths and weakness of the business and identify opportunities and threats you may not have noticed. All businesses will have financial worries at the moment. Accountants are financial advisors. They can help you manage your cashflow and talk to your bank about restructuring loans. If you do not have an accountant, do not ignore your financial situation. Take basic financial information to your bank and ask what they can do to help you. Go with a trusted friend or family member who will support you. Business advisors can help you see the situation more clearly, and help you make simple plans and take practical steps to survive. They keep everything you tell them confidential. You do not have to take their advice, but it is always worth listening to. We are encouraging all business owners to get the advice they need to take action to survive, and so we are so pleased to be able to offer businesses survival advice free of charge through Business Link Pacific, a New Zealand funded programme to help businesses affected by the economic situation created by the virus crisis and TC Harold. Contact me for further details. Also find information on your local Chamber of Commerce and Industry or Business Association website. Stay safe and take care. Coming next – tip 2 – don't be alone. Seek help.
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Chris Elphick
Founding partner at Breadfruit Consulting. ArchivesCategories |