3 strategies for managing the
unexpected in business
Are you effectively managing the unexpected? If you’re like most Small Business Owners your answer is, “Ummm, maybe not as well as I had thought.”
What the 3 best strategies for managing the unexpected?
- First: Expect the Unexpected
- Second: Automate the Expected
- Third: Be Proactive
Let me share how this can play out with a real experience and how it impacts the rate of YOUR Business’s Success. It will reveal why you haven’t hear from me for a week, which hasn’t been the case in almost 8 years!
Expect the Unexpected
Do you have a contingency plan? Managing the unexpected is all about having a Plan B that’s intact AND ready to be activated.
Almost 10 days ago, I fell from a stool I was standing upon. Before I flopped to the floor, I landed half on a table, and ultimately in the Emergency Room. I experienced trauma from literally head to toe. Ice packs are my new best friends! And surgeries are in my future – to some extent or another. Time will reveal what needs to be realigned.
Was I expecting this? No! In fact it came at bad time (as if there is every a good time for a significant accident)! As you know, we had just released our new book: Brilliant Breakthroughs for the Small Business Owners – Vol 2 in the #1 Bestselling Book Series for Small Business. Thank you for your purchase and your amazing reviews!
I already cleared my schedule to only have clients scheduled for the send half of this November so I could slow down and get caught up on some things… like self-care, a little extra time in the kitchen baking for my honey, and being proactive with my business’s social media editorial calendar. Then, my accident happened – all while still on the high of having another #1 Bestseller!
FYI: The next 2 points will continue to reveal how if your not managing the unexpected it’s pretty easy to become one big hot mess.
Pay attention how even though I do expect the unexpected, I let my guard down and this is how it played out…
Automate the Expected
Now you could and should be saying, “Maggie, why didn’t you have blogs prepared and scheduled to automatically go out?”
I usually do have blogs pre-written and scheduled – for at least two – four weeks. It’s one of my major points I teach when training Small Business Owners about how to effectively blog for their business’s visibility. BUT, this time I didn’t have my system properly functioning!
I broke one of my own rules. Why? I was blessed to find an excellent and new publisher for Volume 2 of our Book Series. The activity level that was required of me was much more than I had anticipated.
Combine that with this: for the past four months I have been asking for referrals for a someone to manage my social media. I still haven’t found the right person. So I didn’t have this part of my business automated and outsourced yet. This brings me to importance of my third strategy.
Be Proactive
Now, as much as I thought I was proactive for the past four months, I wasn’t proactive enough in finding my outsourcing partner.
Also, I was no longer proactive in having blogposts ready to be published for you! I really thought I was going to take care of building that up again on the weekend of my accident.
You see, I knew it was a vulnerable spot for my business and was going to dedicate some time on the weekend to correct it. But, clearly that wasn’t my reality!
I’m a believer in the power of being proactive. Thus, this one is humbling for me to admit: I let my guard down and thought I could “make it right” before it was noticed. Well, I guess that didn’t happen! Thus, I own it.
Actually, I’ll share one of my productivity secrets is being proactive.
Proactive behavior (Right Actions) has always delivered me while effectively managing the unexpected demands of Small Business.
Think back, has this happened to you? You know, being able to keep everything moving while you’re diving into something that’s requiring all your attention?
Being proactive is effective for your business’s success and empowering for you to know everything is running well behind the scenes.
Action Items for Managing the Unexpected:
- Decide what you can become proactive on and spend 2-3 days working on that this month.
- Determine what can be automated and/or outsourced in your business. Spend a day or two creating a plan on how you’re going to appropriately transition this to get it off your day-to-day activity’s list.
- Create your contingency plan, or Plan B. Many Small Business Owners, especially solopreneurs, don’t think this is possible. I assure you it is. There are different areas of your business that require this. One is financial, another is your digital world (profiles and passwords), your marketing activities, and your customer care. These are good places to start.
NOTE: These 3 Action Items aren’t typically a quick “project”; however, once you dive into them, they will reveal what is required. Each will become an ongoing project – yet this will give you a competitive advantage over others who are functioning more like hobbyist.
Please, take care of YOUR Business so it can take care of you!
What’s the one action item you’re going to dive into first?
THANKS FOR ALLOWING ME TO HELP YOU IMPROVE YOUR BUSINESS!
Brilliant Breakthroughs, Inc.
Making it possible to Simplify, Transform, & Optimize
Small Business Success!
Maggie Mongan, #1 Bestselling Author
Master Business Coach & Trainer for Small Businesses
Brilliant Breakthroughs, Inc.
Direct Dial: 262-716-7750
LinkedIn: MaggieMongan
p.s.: Create brilliant outcomes through making better decisions in real-time.
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