{"id":41683,"date":"2021-07-09T05:19:47","date_gmt":"2021-07-09T09:19:47","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/?p=41683"},"modified":"2021-07-19T23:36:32","modified_gmt":"2021-07-20T03:36:32","slug":"business-crisis","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/business-crisis\/","title":{"rendered":"Weathering a Business Crisis: Do’s and Dont’s"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Are you facing a business crisis? Do you feel like you’re losing control?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In The E-Myth<\/a> Revisited<\/em>, Michael E. Gerber shares three actions you should avoid in a business crisis. Then he offers a solution: get out of your comfort zone<\/a> and take on new identities by developing new skills. As your business grows, you<\/em> need to grow.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Read more to learn what to do (and what not to do) in a business crisis.<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n

What You Shouldn’t<\/em> Do in a Business Crisis<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

In the adolescent (intermediate) phase of business growth<\/a>, your business always reaches a point beyond your comfort zone, at which you begin to feel you\u2019re losing control. Business owners typically go one of three directions at this point: they shrink the business in size (return to the infancy stage), keep growing willy-nilly (go all out), or go into survival mode.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Go Back to Square One<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

When you have a technician mindset and hit the crisis point, you\u2019ll be inclined to try to go back to the way things used to be, when having fewer customers, fewer bills, and fewer employees meant things were less complicated. You can get rid of some of the problems of growth this way, but when you go back to doing everything yourself, you\u2019ll soon be overloaded again. Things will deteriorate and, like 400,000 small business owners in the U.S. each year, you\u2019ll throw in the towel.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Grow Willy-Nilly<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

An alternative to shrinking during a business crisis is to go all out as fast and as far as you can. This is a common approach in the technology sector. Tech companies started by technician\/owners who have a good idea tend to stay focused on what they\u2019re producing, rather than on running a business. This looks deceptively promising \u2014 they usually build momentum<\/a>, until they crash due to a weak underlying business foundation<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

If you go all out, your problems will be magnified by the pace of growth \u2014 demand ultimately will exceed your production capacity \u2014 and your business will collapse. A brilliant idea and rapid growth by themselves can\u2019t sustain a business<\/a>, although you may be able to walk away with some cash.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Enter Survival Mode<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

The third possibility in a business crisis, also unpalatable, is that you soldier on and survive for a time by pushing yourself<\/a> and your employees to the extreme. But when you become consumed by your business, you\u2019ll inevitably reach a personal breaking point.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

What You Should<\/em> Do in a Business Crisis<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Business owners have a better alternative to shrinking, growing uncontrollably, or entering survival mode: productive change. This requires leaving your comfort zone<\/a> and taking on new identities (manager and entrepreneur) by developing new skills. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Businesses are destined to grow. What usually holds them back are the owner\u2019s limitations in skill, knowledge, and, most importantly, passion for learning and for the business. As your business grows, you need to grow personally. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

When you decide to shrink or go back to square one, you\u2019re reacting to changes you could have anticipated and planned for, had you learned business skills to accompany your technical skills. For instance, you could have predicted that customers would like your product and, therefore, that your business would grow. You could have predicted the result of failing to be involved in the work of your employees. You could have predicted that a growing business would require developing new skills. Your job is larger than that of a technician \u2014 it\u2019s to prepare yourself to grow your business. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

You do this by understanding business processes<\/a>, having clear objectives for yourself and your business, and developing a plan for getting there. This includes deciding at the outset how you want your business to grow by answering questions like: <\/p>\n\n\n\n