With so much going on at the moment and circumstances changing by the day, it can be challenging to stay focused.

After all your business may be operating very differently to normal, you may be working from home with greater distractions, or your priorities might have shifted in the wake of COVID-19.

Despite the altering landscape, focus remains important, both for your business and your mental wellbeing. So, here’s a guide to staying focussed despite very different business circumstances.

Acknowledge the difference

For most of us things are very different to normal. You may find yourself dealing with clients more on a personal level but as part of activities that are not dollar productive. You may find yourself at home, balancing childcare in addition to business.

You may now be sharing the home workspace with a spouse, or you may be in a situation where typical business activities like selling have ground to a halt.

If you’re feeling this difference and finding it unsettling, that’s OK and it’s normal. Many of us find ourselves in exactly the same boat.

The previous daily routine seems but a distant memory.  It can be challenging to work out exactly what you should be doing today, tomorrow or the next day.

Things are different and that’s worth acknowledging, but in the words of Charles Darwin: “It is not the strongest of the species that survive, nor the most intelligent, but the one most responsive to change”.

That means now is the time to reset, reassess and find the appropriate response.

New KPIs

The KPIs you had at the start of the year or even a month ago will likely look very different to the ones you have now. In fact, this might be the good opportunity to alter them completely.

Instead of traditional sales KPIs, you might have targets involving reaching out to fellow business owners or clients, writing future blogs for your business, finding good news stories within your operation or reviewing your systems and procedures.

Setting fresh KPIs can help keep you focussed. They can give you tasks to concentrate on that set you up for when consumer confidence returns (and it will).

Depending on your business, here are just some you could look at:

  •         Updating your business plan
  •         Reviewing your outgoings
  •         Revisiting your Workplace Health and Safety Policies
  •         Finding two good news stories a week in your business
  •         Touching base with clients on a personal level (not for business, just to see how they are)
  •         Reaching out to your staff personally
  •         Reviewing your future product lines

These tasks are designed to keep your head in the game and active within your business while traditional business activities might be in “hibernation”.

Decompress

You will need time to decompress, to take a moment out, exercise, relax, spend time with family or just be. There’s been a lot to process in recent weeks and right about now you may find fatigue setting in.

This too is worth acknowledging and responding to.

A different routine

The routine might be different, but a routine is valuable nonetheless. It helps keep you focused to achieve small but relevant tasks.

Set up your routine in response to your new normal. It may mean shorter working hours or different working hours, but map out your ideal new week with fresh KPIs in mind and try to stick to it.

Is it time to strip down and rebuild?

There is opportunity in change. And for many businesses that opportunity will lie in pulling your business apart and looking at each section carefully.

As we mentioned, that might include setting new goals and KPIs, revisiting your business plan or looking long and deep at your systems and procedures.

Seize the chance to strip away each layer of your business, examining how you could do it better and more efficiently in the future.

The primary aim here is to set up for the comeback. While the situation might indeed be challenging at the present, the time you spend on your business in the background over the coming weeks could reap incredible rewards in the future.

Need to talk it through?

If you’re struggling to focus or find that you need to talk through where you should go from here, I’m available to assist.

Tap into the wealth of resources available by following my Business Conversations podcast or alternatively reach out directly to me here.