We, humans, do
the same sh*t over and over.
The path the US is on
right now,
for example?
It has been taken
hundreds of times
at least.
We can predict
what happens next.
Predicting what happens next
WILL benefit
ourselves
and our growing businesses.
Knowing the next steps
allows us to prepare,
to survive,
to prosper.
Learn history.
Because it DOES repeat
and you SHOULD
be prepared.
Don’t be surprised
by predictable events.
As Fascism
(Trump’s Republicans in the US,
for example,
or PP’s Conservatives in Canada)
strengthens,
the impact on my Romance Novel business
is clear.
It will be closing.
Which means…
I no longer have sales
to lose.
My pen name can write
whatever the f*ck she wants
(without being sued).
She can post
on social media
anything the f*ck she wants
(without being sued).
That is freeing.
It is inspiring.
It is exciting.
You know who else
doesn’t have anything to lose?
Businesses who don’t yet
have customers.
And business builders
just starting out
on their journey.
Be creative.
Dream of outlandish wild things.
You have nothing (yet) to lose.
A buddy said to me,
yesterday,
“The world is changing
so f*cking fast.
I can’t keep up.”
The world IS changing
more quicky
than it has in the past.
But that change
is still very, very slow.
The reason it seems
like it is changing
so f*cking fast
is because
we HAVEN’T been keeping up.
We haven’t been
paying attention
or taking the previous changes
seriously.
Experts have been warning
about the US
falling to fascism
for decades.
We simply didn’t pay attention
to them
until the Supreme Court
gave the US President
King-like powers.
Scientists have been warning
about climate change
for over a century.
We mocked and derided them
until we got a monster hurricane
in the same day
as widespread floods
and fires.
Even the pandemic was predicted.
Experts warned we were due
for a world-wide pandemic.
If we want our businesses
to survive
and flourish
in the future,
we have to pay attention
to experts
and to the less-impactful changes
happening all around us.
The signs are there.
Heed them.
Two days ago,
a buddy told me
the high temperatures
for yesterday,
according to a certain
weather forecast site,
would be X degrees.
I told her
it would be X + Y degrees.
It WAS
X + Y degrees
and she asked me
how I knew that.
I knew that
because
that site’s
forecast model has been
Y degrees too low
for the past year.
Trendlines matter.
They matter
when hosting an outdoor activity,
when planning for a sales promotion,
when keeping our loved ones safe
from the multiple pandemics
happening right now.
Figure them out
BEFORE you truly need
to rely on them.
Pay attention to trendlines.
Part of being a business builder
is trying to predict
the challenges and opportunities
our businesses will eventually face.
This is one of the reasons
I talk about climate change
here.
We should be building
our businesses
to survive and THRIVE
in the future.
And there WILL be businesses
thriving
while the climate changes.
One of the things
I do to predict
the future
is look at other industries
and at other countries.
China, for example,
usually has weather
similar
to where I am currently located.
They are experiencing severe drought.
That drought has led to
electricity shortages.
Businesses are being forced
to temporarily close.
I can’t run ANY of my businesses
without electricity.
During a drought,
while food and water prices
sky rocket,
I would likely be forced
to close my businesses too.
I wouldn’t derive any income
from them.
Which is why
I’m investing in solar.
My businesses need
a source of power
that will still be available
during times of drought.
Solar would hopefully
fulfil this need.
I’m not suggesting
you invest in solar.
Your coordinates are different
from mine.
Your comparable regions
will be different also.
I’m suggesting
you stay aware
of challenges and opportunities
in similar regions,
similar industries,
and factor those possibilities
into your plan.
Use other regions
and industries
in your predictions
for your business’ future.
When I was young,
I would read my horoscope
every day.
And every day,
it would usually come true.
Because horoscopes contain
universal truths
and general predictions.
We then look for results
that will prove the predictions to be true.
“Don’t believe everything you hear today.”
You shouldn’t believe everything you hear
on ANY day.
“You will have good luck today.”
Every day we’re alive
is a fortunate day.
As Seth Godin
shares
“Voices that purport
to know the future
–whether they are psychics, astrologers,
family or the noise in our head–
are pretty effective
when it’s vague enough,
but terrible
when it comes to specifics.
That’s because when it’s vague,
we complete the story on our own,
creating our own fact patterns
after things happen.”
Scientists knew, for example, there would be
another pandemic.
They were certain about that vague prediction.
They didn’t know it would happen
in 2019.
They couldn’t predict
that specific detail.
Remember that when listening to
predictions for that future.
The more specific the prediction is,
the less likely it is
to come true.