Taking On Problems Head On

In running a business,in most cases, things may not happen as planned. A new competitor could suddenly appear, sudden shift in customers' preference or events that happen thousands of miles away could create chaos in the market such as SARS and the latest, the sub-prime loan debacle in the US.

While some may feel the sense of hopelessness due to circumstances which may not be in their control, an entrepreneur has to move on and make things work. Otherwise, all his investment may flow down the drain. We have to take on problems head on and not to bury our heads in the sand. Doing nothing may not solve anything, in fact, could worsen the problems.

What are the steps that we need to do to resolve the problems we face?

First, one has to accept the reality that he has a problem that need to be resolved. This acceptance would trigger the mind to figure out the solutions. The longer we deny reality, situation could deteriorate to a point where solutions no more solutions could be found.

Second, we have to identify the "ideal position", how would it be when the problem is resolved. This would provide us with a frame of mind as to what the possible outcome would be. If we worry too much about the issues and not considering what the end would be, we may get sucked further into the issues.

At this stage your would be able to see how far you are from the end of the tunnel. As a third step, this is when you would consider the options that is possible and the chances of them to be successful. Once you have the sense of their achievability, you could decide to pursue a number of options simultaneously, as what others would say, to keep the options open. How far this is practical depends on the resources available at your disposal. If would not hurt if you seek views from people who you trust and could provide valuable advice.

The forth step is where you have to really put your effort in following through with what you have decided. A long the way, you would find that some of your assumptions may not be valid and new options may need to be considered. Circumstances could also change that what was possible may not be so. As we are in the real world, this has to be accepted as well. The only constant in the world now is change. Time could be important in most cases since most window of opportunities may not be available forever.

Finally, after all the thinking and hard work, hopefully the problems are resolved, not all the time though. If some of the steps have to be repeated, so be it. That how the world works.

Good luck.