The world economy is under a big recession in history. The United Kingdom’s GDP is decreased by 20.4% in the first quarter of 2020 as per Sky News. Many companies are out of business, and those who still stand are laying off their employees because they are unable to pay their salaries. This situation creates fear, uncertainty, stress, and all the impact on your mental, physical, and financial health.
Maybe you are not sure about the path to choose whether to look for a new job or to take the entrepreneurship path. The education system and beliefs in families have been focusing more on creating job seekers than job creators. It is maybe due to the risk involved in entrepreneurship compared to employment that is perceived to be more secure. However, there are advantages and disadvantages in both employment and entrepreneurship.
Let us start with the disadvantages of employment. The downside of employment is you need to compete to get the position. You work following a strict schedule. There is limited growth and income, lack of freedom and you are working for a boss. A study showed that 70% of people in conventional work are dissatisfied. The primary reason employees leave the corporate environment is the lack of alignment of their aspirations with the organisational purpose and also the lack of development and promotional opportunities and the negative work environment.
In entrepreneurship, you are taking a risk because the business may succeed or not. That risk does not exist in employment because the business owner is the one taking the risk. You have a guaranteed amount of money transferred into your bank account every week or every month as financial security. As an entrepreneur, you are a job creator; you have freedom on how you use your time. You take your own decision concerning your business. You can make as much profit as you want.
According to a research, people starting or running a new business venture have a high level of job and life satisfaction despite earning lower-income and working longer hours. Whatever path you chose, you need to focus on what you love doing so that you are motivated, determined, and focused to complete your project successfully even when you go through challenges. Depending on your circumstances, you can initiate your project to find a new job. If you are already in business, you may need to initiate a project to recruit new talents, launch a new product or service or to relocate your business. If you dream to walk from unemployment or employment position to entrepreneurship to get back on track and be in control of your life; you need to change your mindset and have leadership skills because this transition is not easy.
With massive changes happening in the world such as social media, virtual teams, smart machines, renewable energy, climate change, and the pandemic just to name a few, global leaders are facing challenges they never imagine before. To lead and manage people, you need to have the ability to get people to follow you from their own will. Leading is to make individuals or teams generate an effort and influence them to commit by motivating and communicating effectively. As a leader you create the vision and strategy and manage people by planning, organising and controlling activities.
You can lead and manage your personal life, career, or business; even in your social life effectively by ensuring that you produce a quality product, service, process, or any other results. To achieve high standard quality, you cannot work alone. You need the contribution of other people who will bring their skills, experience, and creativity and create positive relationships. Positive relationships are the source of strengths and connections. They are the foundation on which your work is done as a leader.
Who is a leader, a leader is someone who innovates, and makes a big impact by finding a solution to move an activity into success during a change or any crisis. However, a manager is someone who makes things done to make sure that there is order and continuity. For you to create order or change you will need in both cases to influence other people to put an effort and a commitment into the task to be performed.
To be an effective leader, you need to understand your personal side of leadership. You need to have the courage to fully be yourself, with your strengths, vulnerability, openness, and integrity. It is why it is important to be aware of who you are and what you stand for to stay grounded and constant. You need to believe that you are the master of your fate. Successful leaders place the primary responsibilities within the self.
As a leader, your attitude toward your followers depends on the values you hold about yourself. What are your values as a person? Your personal values contribute to your leadership effectiveness. These core values are things like respect for self and others, integrity, honesty, courage, humility, service to others, etc. You need to have the ability to inspire yourself and others with a purpose-driven communication to achieve what is important.
In order to make an impact as an effective leader, you need to be aware of who you are, what you like, and what you want to achieve. For you to influence, motivate, make the right choices and take the right decision you need to reflect on your passions, your values, your purpose, and what you would like your leadership legacy to be. Your personal side of leadership is the foundation for you to lead and manage yourself first and then other people.
The nature of the change occurring during this time of COVID19 economic downturn is shaping the way you or your business operate and develop in terms of how to adapt, be resilient, and prepare for the aftermath. This pandemic crisis creates pressure and ambiguity in the time of decision making. How can you ensure success in your decision making during this uncertain time?
In order to be able to adapt, you need to be resilient based on your ability to reorganise your productivity or your business performance for you to reinvent yourself and your business to move forward. Finding a solution fast is essential. It is why you need to have clarity and decide how to respond to this crisis for you or your business to recover.
What will be your recovery strategy?
It can be by getting the required skill you need personally or you can train your team members on the new skill or skills they require for the specific task to be performed in your business.
It can also be by opening up and unleash volunteers across the board who are your potential customers to come up with ideas through open innovation. You will combine internal and external ideas and then decide which one will bring more value to your business.
Online business is no longer an option but a necessity. Those who are still navigating successfully, their success will not guarantee a promising future because a different world is emerging compare to the one before the crisis.
For example, the tourism and airline industries are struggling, businesses are prioritising tasks that are bringing value to the business in this current environment.
If you have the entrepreneur mindset and you are crystal clear about what your entrepreneurship will involve, you can start initiating your business project by answering these questions:
Why are you doing this business project?
What you will deliver at the end of your project?
What will be included in your project?
What will not be included in your project?
What are the estimated costs and start day?
Is your project depending on another project?
What is the information you don’t have now and you are assuming?
What are the risks and issues associated with this project?
What are the requirements?
Choosing a career path is a very important choice. Make sure that your choices and decisions are in line with who you are, what you like, and what you want to achieve. Therefore you will move to the next level and live a happier, more successful, and healthier life.
