Problems = Opportunity

Good morning,

Just as the clouds that take over a morning sky can lead us to sunshine in the afternoon: Problems in business can lead us to opportunities.

Many times we get caught up in the logistics of problems, who caused them, when did they start, who can fix them, how can we fix them, etc. While we are caught up in those questions or delaying the solution, sometimes making the problems seem larger, we miss what opportunity could exist because of the problem.

Let’s say that you own a restaurant and your fairly new computer system continues to blink out on you, often in the busiest times. You have put off resolving the problem with the company that installed the system, but are forced to call when it will not reboot. They come in and fix the problem, you receive a credit for the down time you have been experiencing since the install and it comes up that they are looking for a place to hold their upcoming business conference. Your newly remodeled meeting room now has a event scheduled! You feel much better about the vendor relationship after receiving a credit back! Your computer issues are solved! If your frustration had caused you to continue to avoid dealing with the problem, being that it allowed you to do so, you may have had them in after they booked their event. Worse yet, if the problem did not exist at all, your meeting room would still be available!

We often dwell on the negative associated with problems, for obvious reasons, however if we expect problems and when they arise always look at the positive side(s) of them, our problems can become opportunities. Just as a cloudy day is always another opportunity for the sun to shine!

Here’s to a week of facing problems and finding opportunities!