15 Ways To Build Adaptability As An Entrepreneur

Entrepreneurship is a journey that comes with a host of challenges, both expected and unexpected. To succeed, entrepreneurs need to be resilient, adaptable and willing to think creatively when faced with a crisis.

To help business owners achieve this, 15 Forbes Business Council members recommend their best strategies for developing adaptable skills that will help entrepreneurs navigate any crisis and emerge stronger than before. Follow their advice to become a more effective entrepreneur and build a business that can thrive in any environment.

1. Keep Learning

Learning is key. Knowledge is power, as they say, and you can grow that knowledge and put it towards your own experiences. You should never discount your experiences, whether they are good or bad, because they brought you to this place and time; treat them like the learning tools they truly are. – Jamil Damji, AstroFlipping.

2. Seek Out Teaching Moments

There’s no better teacher than personal experience, so I believe one of the best ways to develop adaptable skills is to walk right into a crisis with the mindset that it’s going to make you wiser. The more you don’t shy away from teaching moments, the more skills you acquire. Jump in—you may feel shaky but the experiences that have brought you to this point will help you land on two feet. – Carol Leaman, Axonify.

3. Apply The Continual Learning Model

The continual learning model is key to enhancing your entrepreneurial ability. Have curiosity about how your peers work through challenges, work to understand the customer and hire individuals that are open to learning and change—and make sure you understand that success is not solely dependent on you. If you can self-reflect on these things, it will help you through the inevitable crisis that will occur. – Charles Divencenzo, NAFA (National Association for Fixed Annuities).

4. Adopt A Growth Mindset

Adopting a growth mindset is key in developing the skills to weather anticipated and unexpected business challenges. Entrepreneurs with a growth mindset emphasize learning, progress and mastery along with business outcomes. They embrace challenges as opportunities, practice active listening and candid input to support group genius and trust their teams to improve through persistence and effort. – Cheryl Fields Tyler, Blue Beyond Consulting.

5. Create A Mindset That Anticipates The Unexpected

Learning how to be an adaptable business owner is a challenge but it’s one of the most critical skills to embrace. The best way to develop adaptability skills is initially through a mindset shift. Expect the unexpected and you are halfway there. Accept that every day will come with new challenges. Then when a crisis hits, you’ve already accepted the challenge and are able to make impactful decisions faster. – Cami Powell, The Self-Employed Journey

6. Find Your People

Being an entrepreneur is lonely, hard, challenging and so on. So, find a coach, mentor or community of like-minded leaders to challenge, push, support and hold you accountable. There are local groups like a chamber of commerce, industry groups and many others. We need others to remind us that there are other ways of functioning and operating. – Barry Marshall, P5 Collaborative Consulting, LLC

7. Adopt A ‘Never Say Die’ Attitude

There is no one-size-fits-all strategy here. Entrepreneurship requires a “never say die” attitude. There is always a way, there is always a solution and no problem is big enough to not to be solved. When the team believes they can come to you for any life skills, it instills confidence. Feel the feelings, accept support, ask for help, trust your gut and think big. – Kartik Jobanputra, Splashlight Studios LLC

8. Have A Great Sounding Board

Start your entrepreneurial journey with a great sounding board of peers, mentors, friends and relatives. Read and benchmark ideas from other fields and industries different than your own. How I wish I would have had a Forbes Business Council when I started my business 30 years ago. The best way to develop skills is experience. You didn’t learn to ride a bike on the first try! – Joan McKinney, Aurora Exhibit Solutions, Inc.

9. Find Advisors And Mentors

Build a network of advisors and mentors. Having a diverse group of advisors and mentors can provide valuable perspective and advice during a crisis. It can also help entrepreneurs stay up to date on industry trends and changes and better understand how to pivot their business in response to a crisis. – Greg Welborn, First Financial Consulting

10. Embrace Change

Embrace change; don’t fear it. Change is inevitable and nothing ever goes as planned. Take the time to reframe your views. Instead of feeling frustrated, find the positives. Is there a new way to restructure your business given the skill sets you have accessible to you? Is there a new opportunity for a product launch given customer feedback? The more you welcome change, the easier adapting becomes. – Chase Flashman, ShipSigma

11. Listen To Others’ Ideas

Leave your ego at the door. If you believe that your idea is the only idea worth pursuing, you’ve failed. Be open to ideas from all over, including those from team members, mentors, family or even strangers. Everyone has unique ideas and experiences that could positively impact your business. Listen to these ideas and embrace them. You’d be surprised how many times one conversation changed my trajectory for the better. – Deyman Doolittle, ShipSigma

12. Plan For Different Types Of Challenges

Local, state and national government agencies have disaster plan handbooks that outline how to overcome certain situations as they develop. Applying this same idea to business can help provide leaders with a resource to turn to as challenges arise. Rather than waste time developing solutions for every little problem that could come up, categorize them and build solutions for categories instead. – Ty Allen, SocialClimb

13. Take Risks

To develop adaptable skills, you need to first push yourself out of your comfort zone and embrace change. Learn to take more risks and accept that whatever the outcome, you at least tried to do your best. This will help you open yourself up and learn how to handle different scenarios. – Noman Siddiq, Cloudlead, Inc

14. Stay Calm, Then Assess

First, stay calm, as it projects strength in today’s dynamic business environment. To weather any crisis, assess and evaluate the challenges at hand with team members. Embrace ambiguity as a tool. Be open to more than one interpretation of solutions. Use your knowledge and expertise in creative ways and combinations. If the results are still not up to par, keep trying until you see the results. – Francisco Ramirez, The ACE Group (TAG)

15. Leverage Analytics And Technology

Adaptability is key to staying ahead in a constantly changing world. Learn about advanced analytics and research the different ways that technology can quickly improve processes. Constantly challenge yourself to think outside of the box and come up with innovative solutions to any problems that may arise. Cultivate these skills early on and continue to use them as your business grows and changes. – Michael Shribman, APS Global Partners Inc.

Source: Entrepreneur.com

Cc: Expert Panel