How To Emerge As A Successful New Entrepreneur During A Global Pandemic

 

 

Across the globe, nations are reopening the economies after the initial wave of shutdowns to mitigate the spread of COVID-19. The pandemic has been a “black swan” disruption event for global economies - forcing business owners to reevaluate how they manage, lead, and drive change in a crisis.

As businesses slowly begin to reopen their doors and start welcoming customers back, a new class of pandemic-hardened entrepreneurs is emerging from the dust. As some business owners focus on how to help their firms and companies recover from a market-shifting shutdown, real entrepreneurs are putting in the time to develop the skills necessary to emerge more successful and competitive than ever.

The Pandemic-Led Entrepreneurial Advantage

Common sense would try and tell you that events such as a global pandemic would be a death sentence for most entrepreneurs. Yet history has shown us that creative and crafty entrepreneurs can pivot and adapt to the winds of change even during the worst economic moments.

The pandemic has already altered the market landscape forever. But for those who have been paying close attention to consumer trends, the landscape has already been in flux. In business operations, three significant elements have been driving businesses forward:

●     Seismic Shifts in Market Globalization

●     The Increase Of Knowledge Work

●     Increased Technology Solutions For Automation

Simultaneously, consumer demographic behaviors are also changing, as Millenials and Gen Z continues to emerge into yet another financial upheaval in their history. As an entrepreneur and business owner, these consumers will be looking for companies to support that have their interests at heart. 

With these ideas in mind, here are four tips for emerging from the pandemic as an entrepreneur with a competitive edge:

Locate & Dominate A New Market

The shutdown of the entire economy has thrown the whole system into disarray. Companies that were thriving on December 31, 2019, may no longer hold influence in September 2020. Many of those market leaders may no longer exist, as the virus has quickly snuffed out their business.

As an entrepreneur, you have a unique opportunity to rise in the place of companies or brands that have lost their control on a particular market. See a need that others are failing to meet? Step up and create a solution, and you will quickly take your place as an industry leader in no time.

Increase Your Brand’s Reputation

When it comes to successful branding, there is always a bit of mystery involved in going viral. However, the pandemic economy has created the perfect conditions for rising above the noise of other brands struggling to adapt.

Take the time to build your brand’s reputation during this short period of pause, and when the world reemerges, you will find yourself ready to invite new customers into your business. Start creating connections with clients now, and you can watch your brand recognition soar post-pandemic.

Introduce A New Technological Solution

Have you had a great idea in your incubator, but no chance to introduce it to the world? The pandemic has allowed many entrepreneurs an empty stage for introducing their next great technological solution. Disruptions such as global pandemics can help bring to light solutions to problems that have only recently arrived. Consider the popularity of ride-sharing-turned-food-delivery.

By merely switching services to adapt to the changing market need, an entrepreneur can create a winning product where no opportunity was before. Get creative - the most world-changing technological advances were birthed from economic shutdowns!

Boost Customer Loyalty

As the market changes, one element remains the same: customer loyalty and appreciation hold an incredibly influential business dynamic. As unrest and public health continue to fill 24/7 news headlines, consumers are looking for ways to find hope in a chaotic world.

As an entrepreneur, you have a unique opportunity to bring influence to the consumer marketplace with ideas that not only generate needed products and services but positively engage with social issues. Consumers who see that a business or brand is taking a stand for the greater good are willing to pay a higher premium to be aligned with those services.

A great way to find an edge in the pandemic economy is to invest in customer loyalty through creative initiatives and community engagement. Find unique opportunities to serve those who are helping others, and invite your customers to join you for the journey. You will soon see the rewards that come from being an entrepreneur concerned with more than the bottom line.

Become A Post-Pandemic Entrepreneur

Many entrepreneurs will be slow to start a new venture or increase their current business operations during a difficult economic moment. However, those willing to boldly step out in new ways and grasp opportunities as they arise will find a post-pandemic market ripe for harvest.

The future of the global economy is as unknown as the coronavirus itself. Nobody is quite sure what business methods of the past will fade with the virus, and what innovations will lead the way in the new market. For those who are ready to turn difficulty into opportunity, the changes wrought by the COVID-19 pandemic will provide limitless chances for entrepreneurial success. Will you rise to the occasion?

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Coping with Failure

There are unlimited mantras, quotes, and stories dedicated to coping with failure. This is perhaps because it is a well-accepted fact that failure is simply a part of life. Starting and running a business is often subject to the same outcome. In fact, failure is often a welcomed disposition in the discourse of entrepreneurship because it helps to shape and reshape a successful business.  Failure should never be a deterrent from pursuing your business goals. Rather, it should be embraced and perhaps anticipated. In this article, we’ll explore coping with failure in business and using it as a sword rather than a shield.

 

Business failure can span anywhere from an unsuccessful marketing or promotional method to the complete termination. Regardless of what failure looks like in this particular context, it has an impact on the psyche of the self-employed individual who started or took over the business. 

According to Bruno, McQuarrie, and Torgrimson in an article published in Journal of Business Venturing, the self-employed appear to have an emotional relationship with their business.  More specifically, the motivation for managing one’s business spans beyond personal profit, into loyalty to a product, loyalty to a market and customers, and the need to prove one’s self. When you consider these elements of this emotional relationship, it becomes clear, first, why failure elicits such a huge response in business and second, why the way in which you recover is much more important than the failure itself.  So, how do you cope? How do you recover?

1. Learn

                       

One of the best ways to cope with failure in business is to make a conscious decision to learn from it. In a 2003 article published in Academy of Management Review, Dean Shepherd suggests, “learning from business failure occurs when you can use the information available about why the business failed to revise your existing knowledge of how to manage your own business effectively.”  This requires the ability to stare failure in the face and accept that you are still a student even when you run the business. It further requires an ability to “revise assumptions about the consequences” of previous decisions, actions, and omissions.  When you can approach your failure in an evaluative manner, you are more likely to have a successful outcome.

2.  Anticipate and Rehearse

“Don’t make the same mistake twice”.  This warning cannot be echoed loud enough in business. When you’ve done something wrong or insufficient a first time it should prompt you to be more careful the second time around. In other words, you should anticipate an error; rehearse with that error in mind and control for it.  Many entrepreneurs have had to test and retest prototypes continuously to ensure it is failure proof.  Sometimes this means getting out of your comfort zone and being completely transparent.  The more you dissect your product or service piece by piece and ask yourself “how can this fail”, the closer you get towards a product or service you can proudly stand behind in success. This will not make you failure proof, but it can certainly minimize the outcome of same and teach you more about yourself as a business owner.

3.  Think Positively

One of the immediate responses to failure is negativity. A close second is doubt. These two devils can drive your business into hell if you allow them to manifest and percolate.  When you’ve come face to face with failure, take a few minutes to cry and scream if you have to. But once those minutes have expired, commend yourself for your effort, feed your mind with positive affirmations, and most importantly, saturate yourself with acceptance. Accept that the one thing that makes you most like any other business is your susceptibility to failure. Once you’ve acknowledged that, immediately begin rebuilding, modifying, or changing your direction.

4. Start Again

Some of the biggest companies that exist today have failed hundreds of times before getting their big breaks; Apple and Disney are prime examples. Failing just might be the answered prayer you didn’t know you need. It can challenge you into success. Don’t pressure yourself with deadlines if your product isn’t ready. Take your time with your craft. If you love it, you’ll be tender and starting over will only allow you to become more intimate with your business. Embrace a fresh start.

Failure is a part of life and that life doesn’t stop when you acquire a business. Instead, it becomes much greater. Consequently, your failures will increase, but so will your successes.

Getting Acquainted With the Habits of Successful Entrepreneurs

Psychologists have proven, through continuous research, that behaviour can be learned through observation and mirroring. They also purport that it takes 21 days of consistency for an individual to make or break a habit. Why is this important to entrepreneurship? Well, your success as an entrepreneur can lie heavily on the monitoring, observing, and putting into action some of the habits, techniques and practices that are common among entrepreneurs and small business owners who have propelled their careers beyond the confines of “a single start up”. Many entrepreneurs credit their success to modeled behaviour and plans. Consequently, we have compiled a list of some of the habits of successful entrepreneurs to help steer you in the right direction and give you a head start on your return on investment.

Watch the company you keep.

If you want to attain entrepreneurial success, you should find yourself in the company of those who have gone before you and have excelled. You can learn a lot from people who are smarter than you. Don’t let their knowledge dissuade or intimidate you. They, too, once had a startup (in many cases, of humble beginnings). Once you’ve selected the individuals you want in your circle, refrain from suffocating yourself with business and business-related tasks and conversation. 

To elaborate, refrain from meeting these  “role models” in networking and business settings. Instead, spend time with them at sporting events, barbeques, or even light coffee. If you surround yourself with successful business owners beyond the context of business, you create the opportunity to learn how they live their lives on a day-to-day basis. Conclusively, if you intend on starting an accounting firm, make sure accountants make up a percentage of your “friends group”. 

Be intentional about your day-to-day routine.

Successful entrepreneurs rarely complain about lacking enough hours in the day. They recognize that everyone is allotted the same time and it is the use of that time that is transformative. If you are a morning person, wake up early to capitalize on your hours of productivity. That doesn’t mean waking up at 7 a.m. It means really taking advantage of the time you complete your best work. That may translate into a 4:00 a.m. call time. If you want to maximize your daily productivity potential, you must take your body’s cues seriously. Recognize that work is just as important as rest and when there’s an imbalance of these two things, you and your business are bound to suffer. Further, incorporate time for exercise, personal time, and quality time with family and friends. Once you’ve settled on your day-to-day routine, be consistent.

Make use of the short-list.

When you own a business, your to-do list is often eternal. The list itself might discourage you from completing any work at all. In other instances, it can be so demanding that you seldom complete tasks in a reasonable manner.  Successful entrepreneurs report condensing tasks to two to three priority items each day. As a result, in the likely event that you do not get through your entire list, your most important tasks are completed daily. This technique keeps you accountable, increases task completion, and provides an overall picture for your efficiency. Additionally, short-lists function as an evaluation tool on how to run and grow your business.

Aim high.

Finally, one of the most common emotional traits that persist among entrepreneurs is doubt. Will this work? What if I fail? Is this the right way? Will they buy it? Should I do this? The second-guessing disease is correlated with goal setting. The more you second-guess yourself, the smaller the goals. Successful entrepreneurs aim high, no matter how unsure they are. Why? Because starting a business is a risk and that’s where the magic happens in many instances. Will the outcome always be favourable? Probably not, but at least you can edit and go back to the drawing board when something does not work out.

It is better to aim high and land somewhere at the top than to aim low and hit the mark.

The Virtue of Resiliency

There is a scene in the film Batman Begins (Christopher Nolan, 2005) in which the protagonist, Bruce Wayne, tumbles into a derelict well while attempting to hide from his best friend, Rachel. As he quickly discovers, the well connects to a vast network of caliginous caverns—and the subterranean realm happens to abound with the creatures Bruce fears most. Within seconds, a torrent of bats surrounds him, and the dread of the circumstances causes him to momentarily lose consciousness.

Fortunately, Bruce’s ordeal is short-lived; after Rachel alerts Bruce’s father to his son’s misadventure, Thomas Wayne descends into the well to rescue the youngster. Then, as he carries Bruce back to safety in the Wayne mansion, Thomas poses a rhetorical question:

“Why do we fall, Bruce? So that we can learn to pick ourselves back up again.”

The scene demonstrates two valuable principles: facing one’s fears, and recovering from adversity (i.e. resiliency). In fact, those challenges frequently go hand-in-hand—in order to depart from your comfort zone and take risks, you need to be confident in your ability to recuperate after setbacks. Part of that sense of self-assurance owes to preparedness (like ensuring you have adequate resources and alternatives in case of failure), and part of it is related to psychological and emotional strength.

Here is some advice to help you bounce back from mishaps, and overcome difficulties that may arise in the future:

•  When something goes wrong, try to learn from it.

You have undoubtedly heard the aphorism “Every cloud has a silver lining.” Similarly, many misfortunes entail opportunities for self-improvement, personal growth, and learning. When a particular situation in your life doesn’t turn out the way you would have liked, ask yourself how you would handle things differently if a similar experience presented itself again.

•  Acknowledge your strengths and weaknesses.

No one is perfect. By pretending to be an exception to that universal rule, you will only hinder your own personal growth. Instead, be honest with yourself and authentic with the people around you. When you make a mistake, acknowledge it and try to make up for it. When you succeed, don’t be afraid to take (a reasonable amount of) pride in your accomplishments.

•  Keep your problems in perspective, and be grateful for the good stuff.

We’ve all had bad days and trying experiences. But unless the earth has just been pulverized by a storm of asteroids or consumed by the sun in its fiery death throes, things could surely be worse.

One useful way to think about hard times, is to ask yourself whether the mishap of the moment will still matter in a year, or five years. For the majority of problems we face in our daily lives, the answer is no. In fact, some of today’s debacles may become tomorrow’s humorous anecdotes.

Finally, by appreciating and seeking consolation in the positive aspects of your life—including loved ones, past triumphs, and passions unrelated to your professional career—you will improve your chances of both handling adversity and bouncing back.

•  Practice generosity.

Generosity and involvement in charitable causes can increase self-esteem, and provide new and valuable perspective on life. Thus, although charity is often perceived as a sacrifice made by a giver on behalf of a recipient, in reality, the benefits of beneficence can be mutual.

More generally, by helping others in their time of need, we increase the likelihood that they will be willing to do the same for us.

           

•  Failure is not necessarily a step back.

Sometimes it is better to have tried and failed, than never to have tried at all. If you’ve endured a mishap, it may mean you’ve taken a risk and departed from your comfort zone—a precondition for any significant achievement.

You needn’t view occasional disappointments as the culmination of your efforts; instead, try to think of them as unfortunate but necessary steps along the path to success. If nothing else, adversity offers the opportunity to prove that you can navigate through hard times and come back stronger than before.