Coping with the Bombshell

By David Crary  

Often times in business we are hit with those situations that throw off our rhythm and efficiency, and if you aren’t ready with a backup plan or able to think fast on your feet, your company can be under the gun in a matter of minutes. Here, at my field service software company and previously in my irrigation business, we’ve had our fair share of speed bumps and detours but in hindsight I’ve come to realize that many of these surprises were visible before the destruction.

In my experience, I’ve found that identifying problems before they become problems is the most proactive way to keep your business operating on all cylinders. This is hard skill for many of us to acquire because so often we are rewarded for putting out fires but receive no emotional encouragement for recognizing where a fire may originate and eliminating the hazard. For years I ran around Minneapolis and St. Paul putting out fires in my irrigation company. Each day I got home and felt drained, I couldn’t keep up with the pace that I had gotten myself into so I had to make a change in the way I ran my business.

Here are three tips to proactively addressing issues before they become harmful to your business:

• Be Approachable – In the past I had been inconsistent in listening to my employees’ concerns. I was too caught up in the fires already burning to keep my eyes open for new ones. Losing a key piece of your team is a nightmare for anyone in the middle of a busy season, and it’s not an easy one to wake up from. If I had taken more time to understand and empathize with the amount of stress my guys were going through, I could’ve easily saved myself the headache of trying to replace my most experienced employees in the heat of our start-up season.

• Take a Step Back – By taking a big step back and removing myself from the muck and grime of daily issues, I was able to assess the procedures that were creating all my woes. Simple fixes such as taking time to teach my technicians why communication with our office was so vital to keeping the business running smoothly, putting in place a better inventory tracking system, and keeping an open door to what my employees were feeling made a lot of difference in the amount of stress I was taking home.

• Address All Issues – This is your business and every little thing that goes wrong is ultimately your problem. I know sometimes it’s easy to brush aside the little things and focus on the five alarm fires, but if left unaddressed, all that brushing is going to lead to a tinder box and before you know it, you’re back on the fire hose wasting more time. So, before that inferno starts roaring, stick some personnel on it to figure out what could be done to avoid the buildup and head-off the issue right away.

Running a business is about more than executing your game plan. A good captain needs to make adjustments to adapt to the currents of the industry and recognize where obstacles may lie ahead. If you’re not able to remove your emotions from the situation, you may be setting yourself up for more shockers than you need to deal with.