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5 Things I Will Do If My Business Fails Today

Today, I woke up with a strange feeling. I woke up this morning asking myself the following questions: what if I go bankrupt today? What if I lose it all? What if my business fails today? How will I handle the failure? These are the questions on my mind now as at the time of writing these articles. A close friend of mine came to me last night with some sad news.

He has just lost his business and unfortunately, it happens to be his third business that failed. This friend of mine has failed in the telecom, retail and transport industry. But rather than console him, I shook his hand and congratulated him. The reason I congratulated him was because despite his third failure, he still wants to start a new business.

Sincerely speaking, I admire his guts. I know nobody likes failing. In fact, the fear of failure is the main reason why most people shy away from starting a business or investing. Now for those who are building their businesses amidst the challenges involved, I give you a thumb up.

If you are a regular reader of this business blog, then you should be aware of the fact that I love writing about my failures and challenges; rather than my successes because I believe that failure teaches you more than success. It’s my personal goal to become a billionaire in my life time; and in pursuit of this goal, I have encountered several challenges and problems.

Some I have shared with you and some I am yet to share. But this morning, I want to share with you my step by step contingency plan; just in case I lose my business.

I have failed in several business ventures I undertook. I have failed as a network marketer; I have lost several online businesses and I have failed as a distributor. I have lost 100 percent of several investments I have made and I have been part of the business team of some startups that never saw the light of day.

Now how did I handle such failures? And what will I do if my business fails today? What if I lose it all, how will I handle it? Well, you are going to find out below.

5 Things I Will Do If My Business Fails Today

1. I will feel bad

Everyone feels bad in the eventuality of a negative or terrible situation; it’s natural. The reason I am writing this is to make you understand that humans are the same with respect to emotional reactions. I am not super human; I have had sleepless nights and heartaches due to investments lost. But after that, I let it go. I have seen and heard of individuals committing suicide just because they lost their business or investment.

During the global recession, the media was awash with news of millionaires and billionaires committing suicide. From experience, I can tell you that it’s not a pleasant thing to see your life investments going down the drain but you have to be courageous in such situations. This is where the need for emotional intelligence and control comes in.

2. I will access the level of damage done

After crying, cursing and wishing I had not take certain steps; I will access the level of damage done. I will note the debts incurred; the mistakes made, the liabilities on hand and how bad the situation is. Where did I go wrong? What did I do wrong? These are the questions I will try to answer in such situations.

3. I will pick up my most important assets

After accessing the level of damage done, I will pick up my most important assets. My most important assets here are my business team, strategic employees and vital documents. Most importantly, I will pick up the lessons learned from the failure. If I move on without the lessons learned, then I am a fool on the way to financial doom.

4. I will brainstorm with my team to find the best way forward

The next thing I will do is to sit with my team and brainstorm on the possible way forward. We will analyze the situation to ascertain where we went wrong and the possible solution.

5. I’ll either rebuild the business or start a new business

Lastly, I will either rebuild the failed business or allow the sleeping dog lie; and start a new business. Choosing to rebuild or start a business is dependent on the decision I take based on the analysis done by my team. Rebuilding or starting a business after each business failure is what keeps my entrepreneurial spirit strong; it’s what makes me an experienced entrepreneur.

So when next you business hit bottom, don’t withdraw from the entrepreneurial process. Instead, let each failure lead to a stern resolve to succeed. This is how I have survived business crashes, problems and failures. This is how I intend to keep going until I hit my goal to become a billionaire.