It's Time To Address The Fear

Last week, I read an article that the Labor Department stated U.S. employers added 528,000 jobs in July. Wages were also on the rise. The unemployment rate is actually back to where it was pre-pandemic.

Yes, the U.S. has seen two consecutive quarters of economic contraction, which is typically thought of as the start of a recession, but other data points show that we are hopefully not headed in that direction.

No matter what the data says, or what the outcome will be, it matters how we feel. We cannot change what is happening, but we can be prepared. 

As business owners, employees, investors, etc. - we want to make the best, and most informed, decisions we can without letting panic or doubt get in our way.

Just as people were feeling so vulnerable and afraid at the start of the pandemic, there is still a feeling of being unsettled and too many unknowns all these years later.  Boy, did I do a lot of calls and Zoom sessions with clients when the pandemic started.

If you are finding yourself in this position, my best advice is to look for the opportunities.

For example, at the start of the pandemic, I began doing a series of weekly visionary leader calls over Zoom. Anyone could come on, it was completely free and it was simply a way for leaders to connect, talk business, share their concerns, resources, ideas, suggestions, etc. That ended up lasting more than a year and reminded me how much I love the power of a small group. 

I ended up creating new service offerings and industry-specific roundtables from the insight I gained during those sessions. 

Not only did I meet people through those calls, many that ended up being clients, people met each other and there were relationships formed, both professionally and personally. 

The networking opportunity at that time when we were all stuck inside our homes, was still available to us, with a little creativity at play.  

It was my way of finding some control and trying to both be a resource, and find resources, at a time when I was feeling quite out of control.

Right now, look at each part of your business. Everything from team, to marketing, to sales, to finance, to clients to business plans and beyond. 

What opportunities do you see right now for each one? 

Growth comes at unexpected times. Focus on what you can do, listen to your gut, lead with compassion and value your team. We are all going through this together. Let’s be a support network to one another and let’s keep the conversations going and the ideas flowing!