Image by Angelo Esslinger from Pixabay

Businesses are still coping with uncertainty as result of the coronavirus pandemic.

In order to succeed in entrepreneurship, it’s important for businesses to see the COVID-19 pandemic as a short-term crisis.

And, more importantly, see it ultimately as an opportunity for growth. Therefore, eliminate negative thoughts to prevent depression and panic.

For a business turnaround, that necessitates a new mindset: “No matter what, there are no big deals. No matter what.”

The reason? Maintaining hope and enthusiasm works for recovery. So, approach each day with an attitude of gratitude and service.

History lessons

History provides lessons from which to profit for the present and to guide us for the future.

This certainly isn’t America’s first economic-downturn rodeo. But it’s the first stemming from a health scare that emanated from China.

In the 50 years prior to the pandemic, there were eight economic catastrophes:

  • 1969-1970 recession
  • 1973 oil crisis
  • 1979 energy crisis
  • 1981-1982 recession
  • 1990-1991 recession
  • 2000 dot-com bust
  • 2001 9/11 attacks
  • 2007-2009 Great Recession

Other than the trauma of 9/11, the downturns were either caused or exacerbated by stagflation, inflation, high unemployment, stalled economies or energy crises.

Personally, I began learning about mental toughness during the 1969-1970 recession. Among a variety of jobs, I earned my undergraduate degree after having worked on-the-air in radio from midnight to 6.m., as I sleepily attended daytime classes.

It wasn’t always easy in the ensuing decades, either. I either worked for companies or operated a business throughout these downturns, continued to learn lessons and noticed how companies recovered. That included seeking advice from multiple successful mentors, who were generous and gracious with their time and counsel.

Many enterprises became stronger than before their crises. Why?

They were led by true leaders who were relentless and strived to stay emotionally healthy and mentally tough.

10 principles

Successful entrepreneurs saw every problem as an opportunity for growth and implemented 10 principles:

  1. They listened, empathized with their employees and customers, and continued to communicate well with all their stakeholders, including their creditors en route to financial turnaround success.
  2. They performed a SWOT analysis of their strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats and then motivated employees to offer profitable ideas.
  3. While working hard, they exhibited patience and wisdom, which meant they didn’t have knee-jerk reactions. They didn’t jump to conclusions but made informed decisions to implement their strategic planning.
  4. They looked under every proverbial rock and steadfastly fixed problems.
  5. They stepped-up marketing with their customers, and strategized to keep sales pipelines full.
  6. They studied their marketplaces and intimately knew their competitors – reminiscent of the famous line in Godfather II: “Keep your friends close and your enemies closer.”
  7. They didn’t take shortcuts. They did the right thing in all their endeavors. They knew they had social responsibilities for the communities that helped them succeed, so they used best practices in their cause-related marketing programs.
  8. They stayed productive. They used their downtime to learn and read to stay current and worked to rise to the top in innovation.
  9. They enhanced their relationships with family and friends.
  10. They got rest, relaxation, recreation and sought inspiration to stay stress-free.

Follow these examples, and you’ll come out strong — perhaps even stronger on other side than even before the outbreak. Good luck!

From the Coach’s Corner, here are related strategies:

Career Tips: 5 Morning Habits of Winning Entrepreneurs – The key is to manage the highs and lows synonymous with a dynamic roller-coaster ride. You must stay on an even keel, despite all the negative surprises. Develop habits that make certain your attitude is contagious – an attitude worth catching — to prepare for daily success.

6 Best Mental Attributes of Successful Entrepreneurs – A famous song offers sound advice for mental discipline. It’s applicable for dealing with the trials and tribulations of entrepreneurship. The song is the 1966 rendition of “That’s Life,” by Frank Sinatra.

For Best Results to Get Wealth and High Net Worth, 7 Steps – Creating wealth and enjoying high net worth doesn’t result from pure luck. It takes a certain mindset and strong action. Here are seven proven steps.

13 Precepts for Leadership to Disrupt Your Marketplace – Leaders don’t focus on driving their employees to work harder. Leaders strive to make their vision a reality by seeing to it that employees are more efficient and are unified in supporting business objectives. Here’s how.

Strategies to Cut through Chaos of Digital Brand Marketing – Of course, to get a competitive edge in digital marketing, you have a myriad of things to consider and implement in emails. See these tips.

For High Performance Create an Emotionally Intelligent Culture – The benefits of an emotionally-intelligent culture are huge. Such organizations have strong sales, great customer loyalty and high employee morale — all because their employees have emotional intelligence. Here’s how.

“Success usually comes to those who are too busy to be looking for it.”

-Henry David Thoreau

__________

Author Terry Corbell has written innumerable online business-enhancement articles, and is a business-performance consultant and profit professional. Click here to see his management services. For a complimentary chat about your business situation or to schedule him as a speaker, consultant or author, please contact Terry.