Today's Guest Post

Three Focal Points To Help You Keep Your Nerve When Times Are Tough

by Trey Pennington
10/07/2009

The crumpled dollar bill in my hand was my last. Literally my very last dollar. As a small business owner and a father of six, being down to the last dollar was something well past scary. Too many business are facing scary economic times. I made it through that time the same way we'll make it through this time: by thinking through three focal points.

The first focal point is The Past. Most of us have gone through tough times in the past. The names may have been changed and the specific circumstances were different and maybe even the intensity varied, but we've been there. Somehow, we made it through. For me, there have been many "there's". I survived them. As we look back through history, we can think of many others who have overcome great trials and be encouraged that they made it through their "there's" too.

The second focal point is The Future. Business owners are a special breed. Most of us do what we do for passion more than profit. The passion is a vision of the future that's somehow better. Whatever it was that motivated us to launch into business is still before us. Recalling that better future we envisioned once will inspire us to reach for it once again.

The third focal point, of course, is The Present. The Present is bad, you say? True. The key about the present is, while we can't fix every thing, there is at least one thing we can take positive action on today. Focus on that one thing, act, make it better, and then focus on the next thing after that.

It took me a long time to recover from the last-dollar saga. Along the way, friends came to my aid. There were good days and then bad days. There were even days when I thought (and said out loud) that I wanted to quit, definitely wanted something different! Since there wasn't any way to quit, I had to just keep going. Remembering that I had made it through tough times in the past, way I wanted to be in business for myself, and then focusing on the next thing, I made it through.

These are still scary times. You've been through them before. Opportunities are ahead. Focus on that one thing in the present and take action on that today.

Trey Pennington is a marketing pro, business connector, and storyteller for business whose passion is helping folks uncover their hidden treasures and put them to work.