Overcoming obstacles in business the right way
Day after day, I hear people complaining about how hard running a business is and all the problems that they have to overcome every single day. Well, I’m sorry for bursting your bubble, but welcome to reality. No one said it was easy. In business, we have to assume that it’s difficult to be successful. However, it’s up to us either to complain about it or act and do something to make it happen. Overcoming obstacles in business is part of our daily lives.
That’s how I came up with the idea for this blog posts. We need to tackle obstacles instead of just talking about how hard this is. We need to use strategies to overcome obstacles in business and progress in our careers. I’m sure that you all have had a problem at some point that didn’t let you work or even think about other issues and pending tasks. Unresolved obstacles can take up part of our energies and considerable mental efforts. The sooner we get rid of them, the sooner we can spend time and energy in the rest of our responsibilities.
Do you want to know how to do it? Keep reading!
Analyse the type of obstacle that you are facing
Of course there are more than one type of obstacle. If we analyse obstacles from a psychological point of view, we can find obstacles that affect us physically or mentally, directly or indirectly, personally or our environment, etc. However and without going into further detail, I can define three main types of obstacles:
External obstacles: This type of obstacle affects our business environment and, indirectly, us. They are normally out of control to the extent that we can’t do anything to solve the problem itself (although you can take some action). For example, imagine that taxes rise for a couple of months due to a sudden recession in the economy of your country.
Internal obstacles: These are normally punctual issues that affect our business. For example, an unplanned expense that you have to face if your computer stops working. (Panic!)
Regular obstacles: These are obstacles that we have to face day to day and, in order to overcome them, we’d probably need to change our behaviour towards it. For example, imagine that one of your clients is always late when paying his invoices. Then, we should probably change our payment policies to make him pay or even stop working with him, both behavioural changes.
Overcoming obstacles in business: a plan to action
- Be aware of the obstacle.
Sometimes we don’t even realise that we’re facing an obstacle. If something is bothering us, we normally turn a blind eye and expect that gets solved without doing something about it. We don’t realise that we’re behind an obstacle until we live the same situation again and again.
Identify and analyse the obstacle to find the cause behind it. Did something go wrong? Brainstorm what you can do to solve it. Don’t be afraid of being creative in your possible solutions.
- Time is key.
Your plan to action must have a time limit; otherwise, you will keep postponing the obstacle, which in the long run will imply more mental effort to get things done.
What I do and works for me is to split the obstacle is small tasks and set a time limit for all and each of them. This helps me to evaluate if I’m progressing with each small task or if I need to revaluate my strategy.
For example, getting back to the example of the client that doesn’t pay on time. This could a draft of a plan to action.
- Step 1: Revise payment policies. Does anything need to be changed? (Tomorrow at 2:00pm)
- Step 2: Amend policies and edit the new document. (Thursday and Friday)
- Step 3: Communicate and send new payment policies to my client. (Monday first thing in the morning).
- Step 4: Receive acceptance from client. (Allow 2-3 working days)
- Step 5: Evaluate: Did it work?
Setting a specific time will force you to do your tasks. If that doesn’t work and you need to change your strategy, you will be able to compare the result of both strategies used. Besides, this will also encourage you as you notice progress in your strategy. Don’t forget to celebrate your small victories!
- Focus and prioritise.
We are always busy. We always have something else to do and something else to add to our to-do list. Sometimes, that can make us forget about a pending task and that’s why most obstacles remain unsolved.
We need to prioritise and see what tasks need to be done first. It could seem that an urgent task must be done in first place; however, an obstacle can makes us work slower and spend more time in our first tasks. Then, stop and think: can I solve the obstacle first to focus on the urgent tasks? If you can, do it. It will save you time and effort in the long run.
- Use the solutions that work for you.
Don’t be scared of improvising a solution if it’s going to work for you. There are no definite solutions for everyone, so be creative and explore all your options.
Now I’d like to read your methods. What do you do to overcome obstacles in your business? Leave a comment below!
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