Doing nothing is not an option

I was talking to a gathering of small business owners yesterday. We were talking about the current business climate, who's doing well, who's doing not so well etc etc. Most people present were quite animated, putting forward their analysis and in some cases offering the actions they were taking, based on their assessment.

One particular chap caught my attention. He wasn't really adding anything to any of the conversation points, he seemed somewhat subdued but he was generally signalling his agreement that times were tough.

I had the opportunity to talk privately with him later and I asked him about his business and his current situation. He explained that he ran a high street retail outlet. A few years ago he had two outlets but as the market has contracted he has consolidated to one. He explained that the high street was being overtaken by the internet.

I asked him if he had a plan to deal with this but that he said he had no answer and didn't really want to engage in further analysis as it made him depressed.

I moved the conversation on - talking about the need be honest and realistic about prospects in the market-place and that all businesses need to keep a weather eye on what's going on. Sometimes more of the same is just what needs to be done but if it's not working as well as it did previously, something different needs to be considered.

It's easy to get caught out. The world is constantly changing around us and for businesses to survive, we - and our business - need to constantly assess, evaluate and innovate.

I was reminded that:

"even if you're on the right track, you'll get run over if you just sit there!"

So,

If you find yourself in difficulties, doing nothing is not an option.

The first step though is often to acknowledge the difficulties themselves. It's not personal, it's usually not a conspiracy but it is time to face-up to the situation, seek advice and assistance, plan to make some changes and take decisive action.