Business fears and worries

Underneath the cool and calm demeanor business people and leaders carry, they are humans. They have fears and worries. These statements from businesspeople and leaders would prove the point:

US President Ronald Regan says: “The nine most terrifying words in the English language are, “I’m from the government, and I’m here to help.”

Hollywood’s famous producer Samuel Goldwyn incites fear around him. He says: “I don’t want yes-men around me. I want everyone to tell the truth, even if it costs them their jobs.”

J. Paul Getty says: “If you owe the bank $100 that’s your problem. If you owe the bank $100 million, that’s the bank’s problem.”

COVID-19 causes fear and worry, and businesspeople, no matter the size of their enterprise, would be scared, and they surely have their worries. During the Pre-COVID era, there were common fears that businesspeople faced as well. It is just that things were so “normal” that they can put them off for tomorrow and substitute their worries with a hectic schedule doing something else. Let us look at their fears.

They had a fear of change.

Technology changes and digital disruptions were imminent. Many businesspeople were afraid to embrace change because change scares them. Add to this the resistance from long-term managers insisting that they do not need any new technology to “disrupt” their old and tested ways of doing business. Business owners do not want to offend these managers, so they put off the change initiatives to “sometime in the future.”

 Change causes anxiety about the future. With COVID-19 the anxieties are already here. Many wish they had embraced change earlier but there is no point for regrets. Use this opportunity to institute change because there is no or little resistance at this point.

COVID-19 has forced business companies to jump into the digital transformation, and you can hardly hear anyone, especially the old-timers complaining.

They had a fear of failure.

Truth to tell, businesspeople are afraid of failure, not so much because of the money they might lose. They know that profit and loss are part of the business equation. The fear of failure is more anchored on the feeling of embarrassment, and they cannot bear to visualize the smirking laughter of their competitors plus the money they may lose.

Fear of failure is rooted in pride, but now things are different. No one will laugh at you if your business fails. And no one would dare even laugh at all if you try new initiative and does not work out. Everyone is worried and anxious about their businesses such that they no longer have the energy to belittle others. COVID-19 is a humbling experience for everyone. Are you still afraid to fail? This is the time to redesign and perhaps re-imagine your business, including the way you do things. When else would you want to try out new ways?

Innovation and experimentation today are not an option. It is a must. Some initiatives would propel you to a state of readiness and even leadership once the situation settles. Other efforts may not work, but who cares? You should. You need to take risks. Not risking anything is the riskiest proposition you can ever have today.

There is a fear of the unknown.

Economists and experts predict that it will take two years or more to have a sense of normalcy, and yet “normal” will not be “business as usual.” While everything else is uncertain, this one I can say with all certainty that we will not only enter what is called “The New Normal,” but we will enter many “Next Normals” to come.

Many businesspeople fear and worry that they may not know enough. Well, who does anyway? One businessman says: “Change happens every two hours,” and we have to adjust constantly, and that’s the key. You adjust. You adapt. As you go along, you develop. You need to have constant movement. Your team should understand this. 

Understandably, there are many other fears and worries businesspeople entertain today. Let me encourage you that you are not alone in this. The whole world is experiencing a reset, and the one that awaits us will no longer be the one we were familiar with. We will have to adapt. The worst thing to do is to wallow in despair. 

One businessman purportedly said, “I’m a walking economy. My hairline is in recession, my stomach is always in inflation, and these two together bring me into a deep depression.”

Don’t be. So, get moving.

(Bring your family, attend and take part in a live Webinar via Zoom this July 8-9, “Raising Future Leaders – Values, Virtues and Attitude with Chinkee Tan, Nove-Ann Tan and Francis Kong as they present winning ideas on Money Management, Online Education and Life Skills for Success. For further inquiries or registration email: [email protected]om or contact April at 0928-559-1798 or Abby at 0917-533-6817.)