5 post-Covid business syndromes that could hurt your business
Through thousands of discussions with business owners, Pavlo has identified certain patterns among different kinds of business owners. Most are severely on the back foot.
His concern is that if you have a prolonged view on the current environment, the psychology you hold today can change your attitude and patterns of behavior, which affect the habits you make in the next 18 months or so, which could mean in the next 18 months to 2 years you could end up being a significantly different person to who you are today.
Listen to the podcast of Pavlo’s discussion about the 5 syndromes affecting business owners, from The Money Show on 702 & CapeTalk:
It’s important to understand that psychology, and work through it or work with it, to get through the next 2 years.
The 5 mindsets that he is seeing over and over again are:
Loss aversion
This is a view that assumes that losses loom larger than gains. You see losses running out of the business, but you simply cannot see the gain that will outweigh the losses you are experiencing now. The problem here is that you have to change to remain relevant, post-Covid. The extent to which you test and invest in new technology, for new engagements with clients and suppliers, scares a lot of businesses that are experiencing this. They can’t face the enormity of the task and freeze, unable to act. Sadly, your competitors are, and when you emerge from your frozen state, your customers, clients and suppliers will all have changed and you will be left behind.
Panic
When you panic you move into a Freeze, Flight or Fight response – this switches on an automatic response which narrows your perspectives and point of view. It is an impulsive state. An example is a business owner who decides that Covid is here to stay, and so the business needs to cut costs to staunch the bleed of money. Where do they cut? Sales and marketing, which stops the flow of leads into the business, which cuts revenue, and exacerbates their panic because now they actually are losing money.
Imposter syndrome
This is the voice inside your head that makes you feel like a fraud, who will be found out soon enough. Pavlo’s rule of thumb to identify the frauds is to look at what they say vs what they do. Pavlo suggests persisting with a question to get a deeper and deeper view – if someone brushes you off… they may be an imposter.
But right now, not a single one of us knows the answers! Simply saying”;I don’t know, what do you think” helps us move past that place where we feel we need to know all the answers all the time, because people see right through it when we pretend we do.
Denial
This is often expressed as a dependency on one area where you feel strong and capable and you won’t move from it. You obsess about that. But doing the same thing again and again and expecting a different result was Einstein’s definition of insanity. Technical experts are doing this a lot. Brilliant scientists and engineers and specialists will act where they can physically do something – they dabble and fiddle with the product or the service, without engaging the market to see what is actually needed. Making a product ‘better’ without knowing what your customers’ needs are is insane.
Exhaustion
Private business owners work 35% more hours in a week than employees, so already they were tired. But Covid has forced them to learn, adapt, cut, find new revenue streams which has compounded that.
Burnout in yourself or your business can be devastating so if you are truly exhausted or find yourself manic, which often leads to burnout, Pavlo’s advice is to go for a run, or a ride, or a stroll with the dogs. Take a break to manage yourself, before you get back into it.
If your business is suffering due to these psychologies, contact us for a fresh perspective and a trusted partner to reignite your business.