Doing Business Today

If you don’t know where you’re going, you’re sure not gonna get there. --Yogi Berra

Lately, I think everyone has been thinking about how to do business in today’s environment. We’ve lived through the 2008/9 recession and have come out through the other end. The world is a better place with chirping birds and bees doing their honey. This is Nirvana, right?

Well… no. The business environment is not all rosy. We might not officially be in a recession or depression but the world is barely a better place. The U.S. last week posted over 500,000 jobless claims, the third time since 2008. And if you really dig deep into the recent economic data, the business world is not all that robust.

And it’s tough doing business today. My personal assessment is that people are scared… about their job security, about what is coming down next week, next month… and if they can even save a bit of money for their retirement. It’s not that we’ve lost our humor; it’s almost as if we’re moving from childhood to the adult world, except now it’s a daily feeling of uncertainty.

What to do? I’m going to try really hard not to sound like the editor of Men’s Health but I am going to suggest some pretty simple things… like just do your best. Whether you’re in the middle of a ‘bear’ or ‘bull’ market day, just do the best you can. There’s always tomorrow. And I suggest that the proven business principles of a decade ago still work- like honesty, integrity, teamwork and patience. Doing business today with these skills is just as powerful. I’m not discounting the need to work hard- but another suggestion is to balance your personal life with business demands as a daily agenda item. This is a life-long challenge, particularly in today’s business environment.

We also need to be selective in what information we need and to understand how new technology can help us. A reality is that people are really busy and we are becoming overloaded with information. Even in my business, I’ve realized that people don’t read user guides (people are selective in what they read). Add to this all the new technology that is introduced almost daily, including our very own hereiam™, and it gets confusing. Five years ago we didn’t have 3G networks, iPhones, general business tablets or even blogs- there’s more to digest. The winners in business will be those that can take all that’s available and decide how to best incorporate it in their daily work.

Don’t get me wrong- today’s business is not all doom and gloom. The markets were up today- until around 10 a.m. and then they dove on fresh news of some kind or another. But I’m sure they’ll rebound tomorrow- unless it’s a bear day. See where I’m going with this? As an individual business person, you can only control so much in the world. But if you do the best you can, with proven business principles that work and by choosing what information and technology you need, you’ll get bye. You might not become a millionaire, but you can have a happy life.

That’s how I see it today, anyways.