Over the years, we’ve experienced tough times in business and helped many businesses get through tough times. From these experiences, five non-negotiable things have continuously proven to be the most helpful to get through these tough times.

The sooner you implement them, the better. 

The climate of the business world is a bit like a rollercoaster. Ups and downs, exciting times and scary ones — but we love being entrepreneurs. 

If you’re going through some tough times right now, this post is for you (and probably someone you know!) 

Get Through Tough Times in Business

Before diving into the five non-negotiable ways to prepare for tough times, know that this should be continuously worked on. We never know when we’re blindsided by a downfall or things out of our control (2020 through now proved that 100X over, didn’t it?). 

So, know this—ensure you are constantly working to prepare your business. 

Connect with a Mentor

If you have someone you respect and trust and who you know has been through a similar challenge, why not reach out and ask for help? Be upfront with them, and be clear about the problem, how bad it is and what help you need. Of course, you can’t expect them to take on your situation, but having them talk to you and offer advice on how they overcame their challenges could be precisely what you need. 

Additionally, sometimes, it’s even just helpful having someone to bounce ideas off of or debrief with is helpful.

Invest in Yourself

Just as it is a critical time to invest in your business, it is also necessary to invest in yourself. This means learning new skills through books, seminars, boot camps, mentoring, coaching, courses, whatever it takes. To do this, you need to invest time and, in some cases, money. It can feel like a scary time to invest. However, during slower times, skills can be refined and mastered. 

That way, when things start to climb again — you’re ready. 

Stay Connected with your Customers 

It amazes us that many businesses stop serving their loyal customers when times are tough. Companies in a negative headspace lose far more customers than they should, making matters worse. During tough times, you should focus on building solid relationships with every customer. 

It would help if you were communicating with your customers, engaging them, finding out what is going on in their world and, above all else, becoming very clear on what your customers need from you. 

Facts over Fiction

In the middle of tough times, it is really easy to start freaking out based on ‘what could be or ‘what might happen instead of what is. Getting all the information about what is happening and dealing with facts is critical. 

Most things we worry about never happen, so keep a good pulse on facts over fiction. 

Take Action

Whenever you are up against tough times, the most important thing to do is take action. Sometimes, we want to curl up in a ball and almost feel frozen on the spot. The problem is that things will always worsen and worsen much faster if we don’t take action. 

Being in business is a marathon, not a sprint. 

So what things are you doing to prepare for tough(er) times?