Post COVID advice from a Business Coach

We have all been in a myriad of situations with our small businesses and home life situations since lockdown. A favourite phrase of mine is ‘Same storm; different boats’ which sums up the difference in experiences; business disappearing overnight, less business happening, and to some businesses flourishing during this time.

Whatever state your ‘boat’ in is, there are concerns around how to handle coming out of lockdown. Business owners’ main concerns centre around not wanting to go back to the ‘normal’ we had before, i.e. not the same amount of travel involved in your work, not cramming in lunch breaks (if you have them at all!) not missing dinner due to meetings over running and generally spending your entire week with your business running you, not the other way around.

Here are some nuggets of advice that I’ve shared with small business owners across the land:

Schedule in plenty of fat

A common practice for tradespeople (or it should be). We all know the new kitchen or house extension takes longer than planned – there are always problems to encounter and factor in. The same should be done with your small business daily planning. When was the last time you went to a meeting, in person, that finished early? Or a visit with a customer that took a fraction of the rime you anticipated? Right! So, stop for a minute and factor in the fat – an additional 15 minutes here or 30 minutes there and you get the breathing space you need.

Make time for business development

Time to learn from past mistakes. What were you not doing before in your business that has meant a negative impact now?

“A mistake is only a mistake if you make it twice.” Robin S. Sharma

The businesses I have seen struggling are those who spend little to no time on business development. This time is more than just making way for new business, it’s about making you and your business agile. Other synonyms for agile are responsive and nimble. Those words tell us all we need to know about the importance of time spent on business development. Use this sacred time to do all sorts of tasks, from:

• Refreshing your website = making it easier to update and access for any last-minute additions. You know in case of a pandemic!?
• Updating your customer / service brochures = easier for you to add in any last-minute changes to share
• Carving out creative space, rather than waiting for light bulb moments = feed you and your business innovative and exciting product and service launches always being current.

NB this blog post has just been written in my head on a walk to the post office

Not to overdramatise, but as we have no point of reference for a pandemic, I guess the feeling is like coming back from a war. We are all changed forever. Let this time have been for the greater good….

How many times have you heard or said, ‘I’m too busy’, ‘I don’t have the time’ or ‘I haven’t got enough’?

What changes do you want to make for you and your small business to be what you’ve always wanted?

Book in for a free 1-hour business kickstart session and get some clarity, focus and direction for the best next steps in your business.