Many people are asking if it’s a good idea to start a business during a pandemic. The truth is, there really is no good or bad time to start a business. A business' success will be determined by several factors, including but not limited to, the market needs, financial management, and business strategies.
If you think there’s a great opportunity for you to go into business at this time, perform due diligence first.
For instance, a terrific open door was presented to you about a possible business venture that involves a particular Citra hops aroma and flavor that is very in demand right now, approach the subject very carefully.
Don’t let your excitement get the best of you. Although the hops industry is a lucrative niche industry, you still need to make sure that your decisions are based on authentic information and not just hype.
You need to understand what the business model is, what the present market conditions are like, and what are the strategies for both the short- and long-term. The last one is very crucial because we’re already living in the Exponential Age or what is considered to be the Fourth Industrial Revolution.
Defining the Exponential Age
If the term “Exponential Age” is quite new to you, allow us to talk about it for a bit and define it for you.
In 1998, Kodak pretty much had a monopoly in the photography and film industry. Although they did have competition back then, they weren’t enough to faze the giant. They sold about 85% of film and photo paper worldwide and employed 170,000 people in different sites across the globe.
The people of Kodak did not expect that the digital revolution would come up to them and overtake them in the race. Within three years, at the turn of the century, many people stopped using film and opted to use digital cameras and phone cameras instead.
One of the things that brought Kodak’s unexpected bankruptcy and demise was they failed to factor in the rapid rate at which technology was advancing and evolving. What we see in the mainstream today is but the tip of the proverbial iceberg.
Thriving in the Exponential Age
So if we put it in the context of starting a business and thriving in our present environment, one needs to consider the rapid rate that technology is moving forward into their business strategies. They need to take into account the exponential rate at which we’re progressing and developing.
To start, here are three things that business owners and aspiring entrepreneurs can do to embrace the Exponential Age:
1. Provide behavioral leadership coaching
Business leaders should take a proactive approach in running the company. The most effective and successful business people and entrepreneurs are ones who are willing to get their hands dirty. They should provide a leadership style that can influence their people’s behavior through positive coaching that is centered on the business’ values and objectives.
2. Cultivate a culture that is friendly to innovations and advancements
Consider the following:
- It took 100 million people 75 years to adopt the telephone
- Instagram only took 2 years to sign up 100 million users
- Pokemon Go got its 100 million players in only one month
3D printing is another product from the Fourth Industrial Revolution that grew exponentially over the past 5 years, with only under 200,000 machines shipped in 2015 to almost 2.4 million in 2020.
Given the exponential growth rates displayed by the examples above, business owners and entrepreneurs need to build and cultivate a company culture that embraces and encourages innovations and advancements. Leaders should be advocates for creativity in the workplace. This allows people to be more engaged in the production process and gives them a sense of ownership of the company. Once people feel like they have a stake in a business, they will do anything and everything they can to keep the business moving forward.
3. Equip and empower your people to learn faster and more reliably
Since the Exponential Age is now blurring the lines between the digital, biological, and physical spheres, workers should receive proper training to keep up with the fast-paced changes that are taking place. Leaders should provide avenues for workers to learn more about adopting advanced tools, systems, and processes so that they can become more fluent and reliable with the latest technology.
Perhaps we just made things more difficult for you because we gave you a lot more to think about than just the typical startup business concerns. However, knowing all of these things can help you succeed and thrive if you decide to get into any business.
