Small Business Coach - Want More Money, Power and Empowerment? Turn Crisis Into Opportunity

The economic bubble has burst because the foundations were not solid - the unprecedented growth we have experienced in recent years has crashed because the underpinnings were lacking - in leadership, integrity and sustainability.

Keep stretching a rubber band and it will eventually break. New structures now need to be built. As intelligent business owners, we now have a phenomenal opportunity to participate in rebuilding an economy and a society with a different set of values.

For many people, the next twelve months will be a time of consolidation. As a business coach, I see many businesses still doing well, but there are plenty that aren't. It is time for us to consider where our real power comes from. Do our economic circumstances (and our status symbols) really dictate who we are? Or is the source of our power (and empowerment!) within us?

It is easy to get caught up talking about the doom and gloom, or to feel depressed about what we have lost. It takes a lot more courage to make the decision that our outer circumstances are not going to control the quality of our lives. It takes conscious effort to decide that we are not going to waste our life or lose sleep worrying about the million and one 'what if's' that could happen. It takes a strong sense of our own empowerment to reach out to others and help them through this difficult time.

Each one of us has a caring heart. Each one of us knows others who are doing it tougher than we are. Empowerment comes from within. What choices will you make today?

Here's another practical strategy that can stop you worrying unnecessarily. Consider the one biggest fear you have right now. Work out a simple plan of action that you will undertake should your fear or worst case scenario come true. Write your plan down and put it away. Then stop worrying. Many people focus on weight-loss diets - in my experience a negativity diet will deliver you better quality of life much faster!!

Your empowerment is right here, in this moment. It is not in the future. You cannot live in the future, so focus on now. Is there anything you can do right now to alleviate the potential for your fear to come true? If so, get to work!!

Early in 2009 I set aside one day to write my business plan for the year. I made it practical, realistic and I tailored it to the market conditions ahead. By writing this plan out, many of the 'irrational' fears I'd been carrying around in my head simply disappeared. I could see where the opportunities were for my business. I could see what to focus my attention and energy on. I could see how to best help my clients.

Interestingly, more opportunities have arrived for my business in the last month than for the last six months combined! If you want to thrive in the current environment, you must consolidate your time, energy and resources with clarity and focus.

The average Australian spends 2012 hours a year at work. If you're focused on self-empowerment, you can make that time more meaningful and productive than ever before. What or who can you build up? Where can you make the biggest difference? You are creating your future - make it a future to get excited about!

  Do You See Opportunity or Crisis?