A Great Progression is Coming

Sticking with the chaos that the last few years have brought, we have entered 2023 and the possibility of recession that it brings. In 2021, Mike Michalowicz referred to it as Progression at ProfitCon. His thoughts are that life is going to be what we decided to see it as. If you’re worried about recession potential and how to make it through, we have some tools to help.

Make the First Move

Shock is the first reaction we’re going to feel when something traumatic rocks the economy and our businesses. This is a system overload reaction that is designed to prevent us from feeling pain. Overwhelm comes during these scary events to keep us from the hurt of what’s happening, but it also prevents us from taking action as well. Block Control is one of the best techniques I’ve found that can help you find your starting point.

The first step is thinking about what you have to do and then writing it in the forever time block. This allows us to sort of “download” our concerns out of our brain and helps us to prioritize. The next block is where you write down what you have to do next week. Then do the same for things you have to do tomorrow and within the next hour.

Using this strategy helps you take action and breakthrough that state of overwhelm so you can get move on and keep your business going.

Map Out Your Progress

Since these are probably challenges you haven’t faced yet, you might need a confidence boost when trying to work through them. Reflecting back on some things you have mastered in the past can be a good way to do this. Whether you’re a master at Excel spreadsheets, a rockstar guitar player, or even something as simple as drinking water, remember that you haven’t always been this good at it. You had to learn to get to this point, so think about it and then make a list of how you were able to increase your skills in that area.

You probably practiced a lot, probably every day learned from your mistakes, and moved on. Remember that learning that new skill was a process and map out how you were able to hone in your skill and gain confidence in it. Then you can follow the map to overcome new challenges in the future. You never stop learning, so this is just one more thing you can add to your list of learned skills!

Coming out of the shock phase, it’s normal to start feeling a little bit panicked as time goes on. A great technique I’ve found to help manage this panic is the 10-10-10 method for making decisions. You just ask yourself three questions:

How will this decision impact me in 10 hours? In 10 months? In 10 years?

Often it gives you the clarity so you “Don’t sweat the small stuff!”

Build a Support Network

The last but probably most important tip I can give you is to build your support network. Something I’ve found helpful for myself is having an accountability buddy that I meet with every week. Somehow, our problems always seem to alternate so that we can help each other through whatever the issue at hand is. I also meet monthly with my mastermind group, something we have done for the past seven years. We’ve experienced divorce, children growing up and leaving the nest, children having struggles at school, and too many business changes to count.

These people help to keep me grounded and level headed, and I know that they’re there for me if I need a pick-me up. It just makes things easier to have support through the good and the bad. Rollercoaster rides are more fun with friends, after all.

Find yourself a partner to talk about life and the reason you created your business. Sit down and decide how you are going to work through this “progression” and build a stronger business, and even have a little fun on the ride.

bookskeep is ready to be a part of your support network. When the overwhelm and panic kicks in and you just can’t figure out where to start, take the first step and reach out to the bookskeep team today!

Interested in Profit First?

If your ecommerce business isn’t where you’d like it to be in terms of profitability, check out my book, Profit First for Ecommerce Sellers. It answers important questions about how to implement Profit First in an ecommerce business. Take control of your money and your business, and put Profit First to work for you!

You can also sign up for the Profit First for Ecommerce Sellers Online Course. As a Mastery Level, Certified Profit First Professional, I will teach you why Profit First works so well for ecommerce businesses and the particular challenges for businesses that have physical products requiring inventory management. You will learn how your behavior drives your money management habits for your business and how you can set up your business bank accounts to work with your habits.

Check out all our ecommerce accounting and profit advising services here!

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