Crisis? Why NOW is your chance as an entrepreneur.

I’ve heard a lot of terrible stories from small business owners in the last few days. Many have been hit hard by the lockdown. I often sense a sense of powerlessness that paralyzes rational action. That’s a shame, because now seems like a good time to take a few steps forward. In terms of digitalization, but also entrepreneurially in general.

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Don’t panic!

If you listen to the media, you might think the end of the world is here. Try looking for an article in the media that isn’t about Covid19. There’s not a single radio or TV commentary that doesn’t make some kind of reference to coronavirus. That is simply sick. Logical, but sick. Logical because the media are doing everything they can to keep the “sensational pulse” high, sick because that is enormously harmful.

If you look at the actual scale of this pandemic, you can only come to the conclusion that the situation is serious in the sense that our healthcare system could potentially be overwhelmed. At the moment, it looks more likely that this will not happen, but this could of course change at any time. One thing is clear: this is not the end of the world, the chances are very high that we will survive this relatively well, especially in a historical context.

The last thing I want to do is trivialize the current situation. Stick to the regulations and recommendations! However, a clear classification of the situation, which is not just black or white, helps enormously to escape the general drama.

Crises are “opportunities disguised as disasters”

When the lockdown was announced for March 16 in Switzerland, I did what many entrepreneurs probably did; I contacted my business partners and asked for their assessment and gave my assessment. One of our business partners wrote back to me saying, among other things, “I like situations like this, I have learned the most in crises, made the best decisions and done the most successful business in the long term”.

That’s how I see it too. If the rules of the game are changed during the game, the winner is the one who can play according to the new rules the fastest. That’s another reason why agility is so important.

Your mental attitude has a significant impact on your options for action

Whether it is a disaster or an opportunity for you is largely in your own hands. We always talk a lot about resilience in business. Now is the time for you to demonstrate your resilience. I know that this is difficult and I personally don’t always and/or easily succeed. And I also know that someone like me, who is comparatively marginally affected by the measures, can always talk a good game. But anyone who builds start-ups in a challenging environment knows far-reaching crisis situations all too well. It is always, absolutely always, crucial what you make of it. Even if the situation looks hopeless.

Because only those who renounce the downward spiral of fear and panic can mentally return to a stable starting point.

And from there, you can broaden your view of the possible courses of action. Your personal attitude, your “mental model” of the current situation is therefore crucial to how you deal with the situation, how well you sleep at night and make something of the situation during the day. Or not.

In fact, we are a long way from entrepreneurs being deprived of their options. On the contrary, for many they have just been massively expanded. So make something of it! Redouble your efforts. Go further out of your comfort zone. Now is your moment.