7. Willingness to Experiment

Survivors have a high desire to have things turn out for the best. That means they are willing to try new things and experiment to find the thing that works; the thing that achieves the results they are looking for. Imagine someone who has experienced the loss of a spouse. That's a pretty life-altering traumatic event. There are those who will succumb to the grief, give up and simply allow life to take whatever course it determines. They float along and react to whatever comes their way afraid to step out and try something new or to take a step in an unfamiliar direction. People with a survivor personality however, will experience the grief certainly but they will also determine that in order to get the most out of life (in other words, have things work out the way they want them to), they must be proactive. They will make choices, set goals, involve others and work hard to create the life they want in spite of the trauma rather than allowing it to just happen. Similarly, business owners who respond to difficulties with an attitude that says, There's nothing I can do, it's just the way it is. will never reach their goals or create the company they intended to create. Instead, those who will survive decide to do whatever it takes, in spite of any obstacles, to get back on track and move toward their plan

8. Adaptability

If there is one skill that is necessary to survive these changing times, it's adaptability. Being stuck in a rut or set in your ways is no longer an option for the savvy business owner. Being able to adapt quickly and effectively to change, is an entrepreneur's greatest weapon against failure. Survivors, who lose everything in a horrific storm or flood, will look around and see what they can use from what's left to propel them forward. They don't linger in the past and bemoan what's happened; they look to the future to see how they can make things better. A strong business owner will do the same. As things change in your industry, your market, the world of work in general, do you constantly look for ways to adapt to those changes, or do you struggle with the old but we've always done it this way syndrome? Be willing to adapt and move with the changes that come your way and you'll find yourself in a position to ride the next big wave when it comes along.

9. Playfulness

A true survivor knows that a sense of humour and the ability to maintain grace under pressure are critical to keeping an even keel in business and in life. Playfulness is the key to maintaining perspective and recognizing there is more to life that what's happening in the moment. Don't you love spending time with people like that? It's so much more pleasant to laugh than to live with gloom and doom all the time. Sure, at times difficult things happen, but if we allow those things to overtake us we lose our ability to recognize that even in the midst of trouble, one can find something positive to focus on.

Recently, I was working with a client on a sales proposal. He emailed me all the details the name of the potential client, the details of the advertising package he was offering, and the deadline. I did something I don't normally do (and will probably never do again!) and assumed that he had made a typographical error in the material he had sent me. He'd asked me to do a proposal for The Cat Rental Store. I assumed it was a funny mistake, and that it MUST be the car rental store. So I created the entire proposal visuals, graphic applications etc. around the concept of car rentals. The day before he was to make the presentation, I sent him a draft. He emailed me back to let me know that I in fact, had made a big mistake. It was indeed the CAT rental store but it was not furry little pets for rent, but rather large Caterpillar tractors, backhoes and other such equipment.

I was mortified. I'd spent 3 days creating this proposal for the wrong client! I called him right away expecting him to be pretty upset with me for making such a huge and costly assumption but to my surprise, he roared with laughter when I got him on the phone. He admitted to being a little miffed when he first got the proposal, but after thinking about the whole thing, he found it funny that we could have been on such completely different wavelengths. We then went on a hilarious tangent about perhaps becoming partners in the first, REAL, cat-rental store. Try before you buy, could be the slogan!

After we both had a good laugh, I apologized for my mistake, and told him that I would work as long as necessary that night to redo the proposal with the right client focus. He in turn, called the client and asked if they could postpone their meeting by a day. He could have responded to me very differently and rightly so I'd made a huge mistake. Yet he chose grace and humour to create a workable situation out of a potential disaster. I worked feverishly to get it done for the new deadline, and he presented a very successful presentation to his client. In fact, he told the client the whole story about the cat mixup, and got his client laughing as well. Needless to say, he made the sale. It was a great lesson for me about grace under pressure and one I won't soon forget.

So, now you have all nine business survival tools. Post them up in your office where you'll see them daily so that you are reminded about what it takes to have your business survive and thrive in changing times.

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Recently, I read an example of a boss who was so inconsistent in all these areas that the staff never knew whether the good boss or the evil boss would show up for work each day. They spent the first hour of each workday tiptoeing around to try to get a feel for his demeanor that day and would respond accordingly. On the days when the good boss showed up, they'd take advantage of it by asking him questions and bringing ideas and proposals. On the days when the evil boss showed up they'd avoid asking him anything and try to stay out of his way to avoid getting yelled at. This is the opposite of an approachable leader. If you want to be approachable, here are a few areas you might consider looking at to determine if you need some improvement!

Manage your emotions

The boss in the previous example obviously did not know how to do this. He wore his emotions on his sleeve and his staff felt like they were slaves to his moods. All of us have emotions and running your business can be stressful. But if you don't know how to manage those emotions in such a way that your staff doesn't see drastic swings from day to day they will begin to fear you. That makes you instantly unapproachable. If you struggle in this area, seek some help on how to more effectively get a handle on your emotions so that your demeanor in front of you staff is consistent. Then, if they have a big problem they want to talk to you about they won't be afraid you'll lose your cool.

Manage your words

Words are powerful, but too often we use them carelessly. We can get so used to doing that, we don't realize when our words become hurtful or negative. As the leader, you set the stage for the negativity meter in your workplace. If you are the type of person who engages in gossip, uses words to tear others down, speaks about people behind their backs, or regularly uses profanity or inappropriate language in your office, you can bet others will follow suit.

The other factor is that no one will trust you. People will assume that if you're willing to talk about Joe's lack of productivity behind his back, they can't trust you not to talk about them when their backs are turned. This makes you unapproachable.

Manage your time

Time management is an important skill for any business owner, but it is especially important if you want to maintain an approachable relationship with your staff. If you are constantly running behind schedule, or constantly putting people off because you don't have time, they will learn not to bother you. They will start feeling that whatever it is they have to say is less important than what you are doing. This makes you unapproachable. Your daily plans should always have, built in to them, time for important interruptions. You may not be able to drop everything every time someone comes to your door, but you should be able to do that often enough that people are willing to take the chance, knowing you value what they have to bring.

Manage your response

Your secretary, Janet, is in your office talking to you about an administrative issue that is really important to her. Some system in your business isn't working properly and she has some ideas about how to fix it. Meanwhile, out of the corner of your eye you see an important email pop into your Inbox, so you reach over for your mouse and just click on it quickly to see what it says. Your phone rings and you excuse yourself because you're expecting an important call. It ends up not being important, so you return to the conversation. You look past her and see Jim walking by who waves to you and you wave back. Janet finally finishes her presentation. You thank her for her initiative and tell her you'll seriously consider her idea. Even though you've said all the right words, she leaves your office feeling dismissed and not heard. This makes you unapproachable. When members of your staff are talking with you, you owe it to them to give them your undivided attention. Put your calls on hold, turn off your email notifier, and focus on the person sitting in front of you. Do you have any idea how valuable Janet is to your business? First, that she cares enough about her job that she wants to make things better? Second, that she's taken the time to come up with a plan that will ultimately improve your business productivity? And third, that she had the courage to take her ideas to you? Chances are she won't come to you again if you've responded in a way that has not validated her and her ideas.

It is in your best interest to be an approachable leader in your business. Your staff is on the front lines. They are often more aware and better equipped to see what's going on than you are. They are full of good ideas, solutions and innovation and if they are encouraged to bring those things to the business they will. If you become the kind of boss who is completely approachable, you'll daily benefit from their wisdom, and your business will be better for it.

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Organize your customers and prospects - make a list of every customer you currently have. Then, make another list of prospects people you plan to contact in the next week or month. Categorize your current customers in ways that make sense with your industry. Some will be requiring follow-ups record when and how those will take place. Some you want to approach with a new sales proposal. What resources do you need to put that together, what is your deadline, and when will you make the presentation? A couple of clients just need some TLC you plan to take them out for coffee just to touch base. When is that going to happen? For your prospects who will you visit and when? What do you need to bring with you to make those presentations? Once you've created this list transfer all that information into your daytimer or calendar. Even better, make the calls and schedule those presentations, write in the tasks you need to do and their deadlines. Most of us carry all this stuff around in our heads but no matter how good your memory, you will forget some things. Keeping this list current and transferring the follow ups and tasks to your calendar will help you to stay on track and get way more done than you could ever do when you're relying on your memory. If you have a sales team, encourage them to use a similar system, and then schedule in your calendar when you need to follow up with them on various items.

Plan your day ahead - if you can get in the habit, this is an invaluable tool to keep you organized. Before you go home at the end of each day, look ahead to the next day. What's on your agenda? How much do you have to accomplish? Is there anything you need to rearrange because of what transpired today? Or, is there anything you need to do to prepare for something tomorrow? Maybe you visited Client X last week and they asked you to make some modifications to your proposal. You see that you're scheduled to see him/her again tomorrow but you had forgotten to make those modifications. Better to take that work home with you or spend an extra half hour at work to get that done, than open your calendar in the morning and be scrambling to dash off those numbers for a 9:00 appointment. Planning your day ahead keeps your schedule and routine humming along, instead of facing constant interruptions that stop and start your sales flow. Of course, some interruptions can't be predicted, but if you are generally better prepared for your day, you'll be able to handle those things better.

Plan specifically what you need - in dollars and cents - to reach your goal -some people get up every morning, just hoping they'll make some sales that day, but not really knowing how much they need to ask for or make in order to meet their goals. Your sales figures should be broken down to a daily amount. If your annual budget is $100,000 in sales, what does that mean you have to make every month? Every week, every day? How many people on your sales team? How much does each individual need to make each day to achieve those numbers? Having a concrete number and goal in your mind every day is a huge motivator and assists you in reaching those goals far more quickly than if you go blindly in to each day.

Plan for a positive result -sales professionals have a tough job. They must be tougher than most to face those ten no's for every yes. So maintaining a positive attitude is crucial to continuing to achieve success; plan for positive results every day. What can you do to prepare yourself mentally and physically to increase your sales success every day? Small things, like getting enough sleep, making sure you eat well during the day (although the occasional Big Mac for lunch may not kill you a regular diet of fast food will make you sluggish and decrease your productivity), taking enough mental breaks during the day to keep you sharp and focused, and believing you will be successful are all important aspects of reaching your goals.

Plan to maximize positive input and minimize negative input - none of us works in a vacuum and the old adage garbage in, garbage out still holds true. Are you planning positive input into your daily routine? Reading books by successful business mentors, listening to motivational tapes, daily affirmations, inspirational DVD's all can be a part of your sales routine. Imagine how your sales progress might be impacted by taking in even 15 or 20 minutes of motivational material every day before you hit the street. At the same time, minimizing negative input is equally important. Stop hanging out with people who tell you that you can't. Stop listening to those who don't believe you can do it, or who are constantly putting out negative energy by complaining, blaming, gossiping or just talking negatively. Surround yourself with positive people and you will be amazed at the results on your own energy.

Look at your sales strategy the same way you do all the other business planning. Put a few new ideas into practice encourage your staff to do the same and you will reach new heights in your sales success.

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