I usually spend hours perfecting these blog posts, but today I’m not feeling at all well*. I’ve also got some crushing work deadlines. What’s more, my brilliant IT guys have prepared my new website ahead of time and they’re waiting for my fresh words and pictures. I hope the brevity of this post underscores a pertinent question:
What would happen to your business if you were suddenly incapacitated?
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Do you have backup?
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Are you training an understudy?
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Do you hold income protection insurance?
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Could you temporarily give work to ‘friendly’ competitors without losing your clients?
I’ve explored all these B Plans over the years, with varying degrees of success. Backup is hard to retain if your workload is unpredictable. Lovingly trained apprentices leave. Insurance firms ask the most penetrating questions. Clients get used to the ‘other’ guy and are loath to change back.
At this moment, therefore, I’m on point and alone.
I expect to recover soon, but if I fell off my chair and hurt my back today, the wheels of Empire would stop. Twelve years of nurturing clients would be imperilled, unless I could quickly implement a work around.
As I (carefully) sit here, feeling rather sorry for myself, I feel the need for B!
Do you have a Plan B that works?
* Thank you, Megan, for kindly pointing out that it could be swine flu!
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Author
Megan from myBRC
April 28, 2009 at 9:34 am
I have a media background Paul, it’s my wont to jump to dramatic conclusions
myBRC has some articles covering strategies to protect your business if you’re not able to work in it, including developing standard operating procedures and taking out keyman insurance.
That said, they’re probably more relevant to a long term absence from the business, so it would be great to hear how people cope with short term problems too.
Author
Paul Hassing
April 28, 2009 at 10:22 am
Thank you, Megan; I’ll check those out. Apologies in advance if I don’t
respond to people’s comments on time today. My email and internet access
have gone haywire and I can’t get a human being from Telstra Bigpond to
speak to me. Despite paying $69.95 per month for cable and despite being a
loyal customer for 23 years!
Work deadlines are closing in and I’m dead in the water.
Had a shower to try to calm down and nearly slit my throat while shaving.
And it was a disposable razor!
Sorry for rant. It’s a bad day at the Empire. Good for blog authenticity.
Bad for the poor clients waiting for my work!
Author
Kate James
April 28, 2009 at 11:53 am
Oh Paul I’ve had those days…I hope it gets better quickly. I don’t want to sound trite but stopping to take a few deep breaths really does help.
Great post and very thought provoking.
I have got income protection insurance which brings some relief, I share work with some wonderful contractors and I back up my computer on site. After the bushfires in Melbourne I realised that these simple measures aren’t enough so I talked to my web guy about backing up online. His recommendation was to use Mozy http://mozy.com/ to back up the most important stuff. You need to beware though – if you set it to back up daily which I think is the default you’re likely to completely blow your internet usage. I found out the hard way!
Now I just need to finalise my systems document so someone else could easily walk in and pick up the pieces if necessary!
Author
Joanna Maxwell
April 28, 2009 at 1:36 pm
Some days are not meant to be…don’t let the vultures get you down!
Author
Paul Hassing
April 28, 2009 at 6:13 pm
Thank you, Kate and Joanna for your kind comments. I got some of my work done and most of my IT functionality back. I’ll check out that link at my first opportunity, Kate. Fingers crossed tomorrow is better. Best regards, P.
Author
Donna Spencer
April 28, 2009 at 6:17 pm
Sorry to hear about your rotten day. My plan B is to work as much as possible with nice, understanding clients. As long as you don’t do it often, most people will completely understand if you say ‘OMG, a couple of things have gone wrong & I need to catch my breath’
And my answers to your questions are no, no, yes, yes
And I’m OK with that arrangement.
Author
Stephen G
April 28, 2009 at 8:00 pm
Hi Paul,
How much of a ‘Copywriters’ job actually ‘needs’ a strong back mate? (Other than in the metaphorical sense of course ;- )
I reckon you might be both fortunate and surprised at how messed-up you’d need to get before you were unable to produce copyright and serve your clients…especially with today’s communications tech…look at Stephen Hawking.
For everyone else?..well aside from the obvious, which is that it is almost impossible to generalise, perhaps I could venture a couple of strategic observations:
Management Style: If someone builds a business that has employees, uses the word ‘team’ and still considers themselves irreplaceable and crucial to the short-term function of their business, then probably the best thing for them (and their ‘team’), would be 6 months in a Tibetan Bhuddist Retreat :- )
Economic Strategy: After ‘TheFeistyEmpire’ has trimmed the ‘excess’ from their corporate vocabulary, they could build their own ‘emergency time-out fund’ with the savings.
I can see it now…TheFeistyEmpire Short-Term Retirement Village – “…because you’re nearly worth it!” :- )
Cheers
Stephen G
Author
CGabriel
April 28, 2009 at 11:52 pm
Good Morning, Paul. Here in Minneapolis, your current temperature at 8:40 am CDT is 42°F under clear skies. And presently this evening in Melbourne at 11:40 pm, it’s 45°F. I don’t like hearing you’re in distress…I’ve been there too many times and know exactly what you speak of. I’m sending good wishes your way, half-a-world away. One “comfort” – I see we both overpay for cable. These companies — never mind. My comment will turn into a rant on THEM! :-
On my side of the globe Paul, and in my professional world, no matter which place I would be in right now, whether it was doing what I did for 26 years (professional stage actor) or doing what I do now (radio and writing) I do not have a Plan B. But there’s a reason for that…
The problem with a Plan B for theatre is…THEY, meaning actual theatres you’re working at, have a Plan B in place. It’s called…an understudy. I was once in a show in Los Angeles. Pretty significant show considering we had a big-name producer behind it. I was the understudy to the lead. The lead got trashed in the Los Angeles Times. The producer wasn’t thrilled with this but he moved forward. In my contract, I had three specified dates I was going to go on. The first night I was up, it happened that another critic was in the audience. He wrote a second review on the play and the show got a great review. Needless to say, he loved my work. Ticket sales went up immediately.
Guess who…
A. Was suddenly out of a job and…
B. Who was now playing the role?
Plan B’s are never good for the Plan A actor.
And in radio, you ever notice talk hosts and DJ’s will “happily” go on the air sick. Even if they can barely speak, there they are, doing their show. Why? Because we come and go faster than a New York Minute. The second someone else is on the air for you, the fear is that he/she will take your job. Radio is the most ruthless business I’ve ever seen…next to to the tow truck industry. Amazing how when you’re suddenly stuck on the road, a half-dozen truck come screaming towards you.
So, Plan B amounts to one’s health. Staying healthy. Period. Because if my employer has to go to Plan B, I need to go to Plan U: Unemployment.
If I was closer and you needed a Plan B player off the bench to help, I’d gladly do what I could to help you out. That’s what friends do.
Author
Paul Hassing
April 29, 2009 at 6:32 am
Dear Christopher, this is a phenomenal comment which contains, in addition to kind support and convincing evidence, some of the best advice I’ve ever received.
I do need to take better care of myself. The lines under my eyes have been multiplying daily from stress, overwork and lack of holidays and exercise. Yours is a clarion call to action and I will start dialogue with Fonnie today about how I can turn this ship around.
I can’t thank you enough for taking the time to write in such depth and for illustrating your arguement with such compelling windows on your experience. What a way to start my day!
Author
Paul Hassing
April 29, 2009 at 9:47 am
Hi, Donna; I love your website and your great comment. So much sense in so few words. Many thanks!
Author
Paul Hassing
April 29, 2009 at 9:54 am
Your ideas, Stephen, continue to push, rip and shred the envelope! With regard to backs, I once threw mine out for four days by chopping wood under the eaves when it was raining. Even flat on my back in bed with pain killers and a laptop, the pain and fuzziness purged my brain of every creative impulse, rendering me useless to my clients. The best I could manage was to soak off some uncancelled stamps for reuse while making tea. Total contribution: $3.45.
Author
Wendy
April 30, 2009 at 5:51 pm
Paul,
May I suggest yoga, it’s an amazing stress reducer. And it’s something you can do at home. Pick up a beginner DVD, pop it in the machine and go. Not only will it reduce your stress level, it will strengthen your back so you don’t have to be stressed about hurting your back.
Feel better!
Author
Paul Hassing
April 30, 2009 at 6:08 pm
Thank you, Wendy. Our dear friend is an instructor and Fonnie did very well for many months with a videotape. Alas, due to unfortunate incidents suffered in the Scouting movement, I have terrible trouble trusting ‘the space’.
Yoga, meditation and the like just don’t seem to be viable options for me. I even have a three-door car, so adults-in-positions-of-trust can’t sneak up on me. It’s no accident that I work alone, from home. Way too much information, I know. But I didn’t want to dismiss your kind suggestion out of hand. Thank you!