The Superpower Project Future Proof Your Business

Blaise Hunter | Communications Expert

“Do something today that your future self will thank you for.” Anonymous

How do we future proof our businesses? Can we take steps to increase the chances of business survival? We don’t have a crystal ball, but we can take strides for our businesses to face unforeseen challenges. Preparing for future challenges is imperative but we also need consumers, industry leaders, and governing bodies to support this process. We need our culture to be more conscious of the future and less focused on instant results. There’s always a balance but our tomorrow selves will thank us dearly for putting some energy into what that looks like down the road. How good is it if I have a flourishing business this month but it runs out of steam by next quarter? A slow and steady burn is better than a sizzle and fizzle flame.

This is the formula I have developed for future proofing our businesses. It’s called the 5 P’s to Success. By applying the 5 P formula to any situation in your business, you will never fail because this equation helps us to simply outlast any problem. This secures our future.

1. Your Pain Is Your Gift

What is your pain? What are your giftings? What is the problem you want to fix in the world? The very thing that is a challenge or a pain in our lives or the economy is the big blinking light that beacons us to be the solve. The future lies within the questions and us reconciling them. Explore the pains. Don’t run from them or avoid them but rather lean into them. We cannot solve what is not already a problem. The issue you are facing in your business today is the gift that will unlock resiliency and longevity tomorrow.

2. Pilot Ideas from That Pain

We often have many visions and ideas where we want our business to go but this can lead to confusion and lack of direction. We need to sift out what is a passion and what is a viable business pathway. Listing these possible business plans/avenues/solutions will help create a clear action plan. After citing each idea go back and ask yourself if it's a viable business idea or is it more of a passion project on a personal level. Then list the top three in the order of importance or with the highest value. We need expansion but in the right direction. We mustn’t depend on one part or big idea of our business for complete success. Always be on the lookout for another sustainable idea to pilot. Most companies achieve success with just one great product. It could be for a niche market or a mass market audience. Even if

it’s very popular and responsible for generating the bulk of the total revenue, you must think about other ways to diversify your product/idea portfolio. This strategy might contradict with the common business advice of focusing only on one area of your business. However, in order to increase your chances for survival, you must reduce your dependence on one part of your business. So, to safeguard the future of your business, you must diversify. New products and ideas could be line extensions for the existing business. Think of an octopus. There is a main body with many tentacles that branch out, but all are extensions of the core concept.

3. Create Effective Partnerships

Now you have diversified and listed your top three piloted ideas of where you want your business to go and grow, list potential colleagues, organizations, or alliances that would benefit from collaborating with you. Also write down what your weaknesses are. This will widen the possibility pool because these prospective partners could provide what you can't and vice versa. The partnerships need to be a continual thing that will drive more piloted ideas. Think of how to invest back into your business and how to leverage your value with others’ needs. This creates an invitation for meaningful partnerships and clarity on where to invest in other grassroots initiatives and beyond. Rethink your strategies that may fail to engage new customers or foster fresh collaborations.

I’ve read somewhere that, “What got you here, won’t take you there.” This simply means that the strategies that you used to acquire your existing base of customers and power

Partners may not be useful to acquire new ones in the future. Your old strategies need to adapt with the ever-changing world and won’t always work with current and future trends. We must be flexible and innovative with our approaches and partnerships. Thinking about partnerships in an abstract way is key. Partnering with concepts that change our times will help predict the future demands today.

Look at the days of Henry Ford. He revolutionized transportation by making affordable and reliable cars. People said, “We don’t need cars, we just need faster horses.” Ford went all in on a huge risk, and it worked. So, your customers or market can’t always tell you what they want, you must anticipate it. This needs some imagination and experience with the trends of the industry you work in. Play in the partnership pool and create something ground-breaking with innovation.

4. Promote Your Business

Marketing is the linchpin to every business. You can have the greatest idea, the best product, and the biggest partnership but if you don't know how to promote them, the business has no reach power. List ways you can start promoting your ideas, brand, message, and partnerships better. Marketing is about giving room for trial and error and creating a favourable environment for innovation. Predicting the future is not possible but we can get close to it. You can’t always win by following the leaders, you have to innovate at one point to stay ahead in the game. Transformation is not easy, and you might fail several times but once you hit the bull’s eye, you’ll leap ahead of your competition. To foster the culture of innovation, you need to create a supportive environment for it. Effective marketing comes from innovation and investing in untapped markets, people, platforms, and resources. Make bold moves and launch risky campaigns. This creates a buzz around your business and attracts more partnerships and opportunities. Silence is for strategizing, but promotion is the lifeblood of sustaining and growing.

5. Press On

We all face challenges and setbacks in our lives and in business but to ensure victory we can't give up. We need to learn how to pivot and press on. Identify things that aren't working and try to come up with ways to pivot them. What are some things that need to stop for other important goals to be nurtured? If there was a coach standing beside you, what could they say to motivate you? Write that saying down. Pressing On will allow you to outlast any problem. This is the most important P in the formula. No matter what, you have to Press On. This is where 90 percent of businesses fail. They have combined all the 4 P’s. They have done all the right things but without grit, there will never be a pearl. The grit is the secret sauce for future success. You will have setbacks and obstacles and will face things that will make you want to give up, but you need to Press On. You must be resolute in your business. If you fall seven times, get up eight.

And remember when you face a roadblock ask, “How do I pivot the problem and make it my pearl”?

Things are changing fast in today’s business scenario and even a successful business cannot guarantee its survival if it’s not prepared for the future. We are the drivers of our business. Either we adapt now or fail to exist tomorrow. By using the above formula, you can future proof your business and give it a fighting chance to withstand the pressure test of today. To learn more about Blaise The Trail Inc. Consulting visit www.blaisehunter.com.