How To Grow Your Business and Thrive in Tough Times

"How's business?" What's the right answer for presenting your business and brand when the economy is still unpredictable, clients appear frozen, and no one is knocking at your door? In daily life as well as formal presentations, I am constantly asked for how to survive tough times. I try to be helpful, realistic and straightforward. In good times and in bad, I advocate for telling the truth. I don't mean you have to drown clients and prospects with glum tales of woe. No way. Instead, I mean tell the truth about your passion, your stick-to-itiveness. This morning, at coffee I ran into a fellow entrepreneur. She nodded when I told her that in this downtime I'd turned my life around. I've built an all virtual online training system that I never would have had time to do if I'd continued my road warrior training schedule of the last 2 decades. Instead of commiserating, she shared the same perspective. "Never give up! And I mean never." she told me. "My dad used to run a chicken farm. He was up before dawn to check on the chickens, gather eggs. Then, he raced over to other parts of the farm to make sure the sheep, cows and other animals were doing fine." "He used to tell me he couldn't give up for the animals' sake. But really, it's true for all of us." And I agree wholeheartedly. Never give up. Always look for what a down turn is bringing as an opportunity. In the light of less client work, you have time to write articles, write a book, make videos, and do the creative work you've been postponing for 'sometime.' And when the economy regains momentum, you'll be rarin' to go with new trainings, new skills and a more robust offer. In presentations, it's the same thing. You may find that you need to break from the things that worked in the past. Instead of doing the same-old thing, you look around and invest in learning. Down turns in work are ideal moments to build your skills. Invest heavily in learning new technology, new tricks and new ways to communicate. And if you're looking for true reward, share your knowledge. Share your skills of what works best with younger folks. They'll appreciate your insights and you can feel the rewards of mentoring another passionate entrepreneur. At the same time, remember that learning is a two-way street. While you're sharing the school of hard knocks tricks, they'll turn you on to new ways to present information. Online Video. Screen captures. Whiteboard drawings. In a short amount of time, you'll find that you can raise your own standards and add in new skills to how you present your business to clients and prospects. As my great aunt used to say, "If you get lemons...make lemonade." When you apply yourself to all the opportunities that are available right now, you'll find that today is a great day. For learning, presenting, and growing your business. Get exceptional results in even in a recession, by investing in learning new presentation skills. You can grow your business by telling simple, easy-to-understand stories.