Mindset
Darwin Quotes To Inspire Business During Adversity
During tough times, tough people get going and with unprecedented share market losses and a year of regional lockdowns due to Coronavirus, extreme measures are being taken to keep some businesses afloat, particularly in the industries directly impacted.
Tourism is bouncing back – though too slowly for many small businesses, particularly in small towns. This is the time leaders step forward and up, leading by example. The spread of false information is not helpful and nor is over-sensationalism. Inflation is biting, but consumers will buy what they truly desire or need. Your business needs you, and thankfully, there are many Darwin quotes to inspire you to take calculated risks to do things differently.
In business management, plan to succeed and prepare for the worst. During adversity rather than be caught navel-gazing, focus on solutions to get through the worst. Here are a few Charles Darwin quotes that are sure to help you stay the course.
Inspirational Quotes
There are so many inspirational quotes from Darwin that we will just review the quotes that resonate with us right now.
In the long history of humankind (and animal kind, too) those who learned to collaborate and improvise most effectively have prevailed.
Work As A Team
Working through challenges as a team draws on the collective brainpower and wisdom, so the sum of the whole is more considerable than it’s parts. Yet another quote, this time by Aristotle, that aptly describes the meaning of Darwin’s quote.
Use your team to brainstorm methods and paths that can break the downward trend. Get your business back on track so it can last the distance and overcome obstacles that, if left to their own resources could bring your business to its knees.
Dispell Misinformation
What not to like about this Darwin quote? False truths and misinformation are rife, and the fact is (according to the research done by FT.com) we’re not good at knowing the difference between fake and real news.
Worse still, fake news has spread like wildfire before fact-checkers have researched and reported that it’s a lie. Also, fake news can be promoted and therefore have far greater reach, i.e. reach more people online, so this brings us to Darwin’s next quote.
To kill an error is as good a service as, and sometimes even better than, the establishing of a new truth or fact.
C. Darwin
Open Communication & Transparency
Avoid the spread of misinformation about your business, with open communication and transparency with your staff. Also, seek to understand how your customers are dealing with the events and work together to deliver win-win outcomes.
Ignorance more frequently begets confidence than does knowledge.
The very essence of instinct is that it’s followed independently of reason.
These two Darwin quotes go hand in hand. The panic buying has been witnessed in response to multiple media updates on Coronavirus.
In fear, it’s our lizard brain that takes control of the fight or flight response. Therefore it’s instinct first, and then much later on, we’ll give reason a chance, however by this time we’ve already taken action.
And finally, this Darwin quote should be an inspiration for all businesses……
It is not the strongest of the species that survives, nor the most intelligent that survives. It is the one that is the most adaptable to change.
Charles Darwin 1809 – 1882
Adapt To Change To Remain Relevant
The enterprises that succeed are those that stay relevant whatever the market conditions and it all starts with a process. Embracing change with a transformation process driven by a team or will speed up your business’s ability to change tack to remain relevant with your customers.
Looking forward and forecasting market conditions can give your company some breathing room to instigate a new direction for a product or sales strategy before your business is dependent on it to stay afloat.
For example, the coronavirus outbreak in China was forwarning to companies in industries most likely to be affected, including tourism, events and conferences, and travel.
Many airlines acted quickly, canceling scheduled flights and focusing on local travel advertising and sales strategy. Air New Zealand seemingly overnight released NZD$9 domestic flights and they all sold out within minutes. So popular was the deal that their GrabASeat website crashed leaving customers frustrated that they’d missed out on the sale.
Lessons From China
In China, the post-recovery is well underway, and many organizations are optimistic of a swift economic rebound. In an article on HBR.org, the lessons are noted as:
- Focus forward, and create new scenarios, i.e. reframe your actions.
- Use top-down and bottom-up change management. (see the hotel chain example)
- Dispell misinformation, communicate with all staff regularly on the position and action going forward
- Shift your sales focus to match demand
- Recovery could be quick so be prepared for a boost in sales and operations
Summary
Organizations everywhere need a disaster recovery plan. Plus they need to time their move to focus on post-recovery initiatives, so their business is not left behind when the economic boost occurs. As Darwin says, it’s not the strongest, nor the cleverest but the most adaptable to change that survive and often thrive.
