The State of Small Business Recovery
SmallBizLady: Let’s talk about that state of small business. What % of small businesses were killed by COVID-19?
Dave Walker: Unfortunately, we don’t know the magnitude of the impact right now. Nobody has the real good sense of it. Frankly, it’s tough to report and really track all those one person’s small business that had to close. The best estimate right now is anywhere between 30%-50% of all small businesses that are under 500 employees had to close during the pandemic.
How to Manage a Digital Pivot
SmallBizLady: How did you pivot in the midst of the Pandemic?
Tekoa Hash: When the pandemic first hit, we witnessed 15 of our productions shut down within 36 hours. I was more concerned about our contract workers and employees than myself. My initial thought was, I’m grateful for the break. I was completely burnt out at the top of last year, and I considered selling my stake in my business. Everyday felt like a burden before Covid. The crisis allowed me to reassess where we wanted to be. We started several businesses during Covid. Our first venture was the Global Beauty Tribe, a destination hub for black and indigenous beauty creatives. We started selling Glam PPE to cater to our production clients, and roster of artists. It was high quality disposable protection gear products at affordable prices. Then we created BossCon, a women’s empowerment online community, with masterclasses, lifestyle branded products and content. We also partnered with another black women-owned businesses to raise money for glam creatives that were initially left out of the stimulus package. We raised over $25K under Beauty Relief Fund. Due to the success of a sold-out conference with BossCon, we had the opportunity to produce other virtual events for other clients which helped bring in income while our tv productions were down.
SmallBizLady: How did the Pandemic crisis make your business stronger?
Tekoa Hash: The Pandemic offered us an opportunity to work on our business from the inside-out. We immediately went back to the drawing table and looked at our processes and procedures and spent time fine tuning areas that had been neglected when we were catering to clients, day and night. The Pandemic allowed us to work on more intentional and aligned work. We were able to give some of our ideas and concepts legs and it put us in position to have multiple streams of income within our infrastructure. Before the pandemic, 90% of our business came from one source which put us in a very compromising space. We knew then that we could no longer rely on one stream of income to sustain our business. We just didn’t have the time, resources or manpower to expand the business before the Pandemic. The crisis gave us time to take a deep dive into our other areas and build new strengths. We didn’t take any days off. We repositioned ourselves to make our infrastructure stronger and build a business that can scale.
SmallBizLady: What is the most valuable lesson you learned in 2020?
Tekoa Hash: The most valuable lesson that I learned, was not to operate in fear. Covid allowed me to realign with my source and provider, and to remember God’s promise. I was afraid of losing clients and shows. God showed me that even in a Pandemic with no income, that he not only would he sustains us, but he propelled us. Although Covid has been difficult, the Pandemic gave me the confidence to say no to what does not align with our business and vision. And to stand for what we deserve. I will no longer stand in fear of losing clients. When rejection comes, I will rejoice in it, knowing that God has something better for us.
How to Harness the Power of Your Anxiety
SmallBizLady: How would you describe nervous energy and how can you use this type of energy to feel productive and fulfilled?
Dr. Chloe: Nervous energy is that sense of feeling “on” that we get when we feel a little anxious. The healthy function of anxiety is to stimulate us to prepare or build skills for situations where we know we need a boost, so the best way to use nervous energy is to focus it on action-oriented steps towards our goals.
SmallBizLady: Does stress affect successful people differently than let’s say your average person?
Dr. Chloe: Successful people sometimes get “stressed about stress” because they’re used to feeling in control. So, when they encounter a situation that leaves them feeling overwhelmed, they can experience a “double whammy” of stress about the original problem, plus stress from the awareness that they feel a loss of control.
SmallBizLady: In your book Nervous Energy, you outline nine anxiety tools to help people harness their nervous energy for good. Can you share these anxiety tools?
Dr. Chloe: All nine of my “Nervous Energy” Techniques are The Three-Part Breath,
The Zone of Control, Mental Shortlist, To-Do List with Emotions, Mind Mapping, Worry Time, Response Prevention, Thought Replacement, Anchoring Statements.
Let me explain my favorite technique, The Mental Shortlist. It is a great technique for people with extra nervous energy. Many intelligent, driven people can almost be “like a dog with a bone” when a certain thought or goal gets stuck in their head. This tenacity can be a blessing in many cases, but a curse in others. When you’ve reached a point where the smartest thing to do is to mentally back off a certain topic, but you can’t quit thinking about it, The Mental Shortlist technique can help: List 5 topics that are much better for you to focus on– a range of anything from holiday shopping to work projects to any other topic where you know your energy will be better spent than ruminating on the old topic. It will be much easier for your mind to pivot away from the old topic when you have an attractive list of alternatives. I compare it to the way it’s easier for emotional eaters to refuse that bag of candy when they have a fridge-full of pre-cut healthy snacks!
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