I can’t stress how important situational adaptability is for group home entrepreneurs. The ability to see that your plan does not fit the current situation, and a minor pivot is called for in order to resolve the issue. Unfortunately, we have this beaten out of us by the school system because we are so used to stick to the guidelines and throwing away all of our creativity that we forget we can always find a way.
Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos is famous for saying “innovate your way out”! He felt that he was only owned by the laws of physics and every other rule could be changed if we approached it the right way. When you have this mindset, it means that you constantly are looking for a way out. Constantly looking for a new approach or a better way to get the same job done.
Situational Adaptability at It’s Worse
A member of our Gold Membership Plan sent me an email upset because in our lease agreement did not match their state perfectly. In addition, their state required an extra paragraph be added to the agreement.
We were aware of this when we made these documents, and it is the reason that we give our members these documents in WORD, meaning they can go in and make edits and changes to the documents. They are just templates, but if they need to be changed you can simply innovate your way out. As a matter of fact, the amount of stress and frustration it causes this person was just not worth it.
A Pebble In The Way
Have you ever seen what ants do when you threw something in their way? They don’t get frustrated or call their friends or over react, they simply go around it. If you add another obstacle they go around that too, but they never lose focused on the mission. This is the mindset you need to adopt.
There are always going to be pebbles in the road and you can’t stop and stare at the pebble as if you have never seen one before. Figure out what you have to do to finish the mission. The great entrepreneurs and the most successful people in the world have mastered this.
Get Started Now
Take Time to Think
I asked her to give me an example of a lease from her state. The leases were basically identical except for that one statement, so I asked why don’t you copy and paste that one statement? There was silence on the phone and she just said: “I never thought of that!”
It is easy to get caught moving forward so fast that you forget to stop and take a deep breath. Once a week I like to sit down in a chair with no technology and just spend time thinking. You can answer hard questions when you spend time thinking otherwise we can spend an eternity just spinning our wheels.
If she would have just sat down and taken a deep breath she would have seen the answer staring her right in her face. She would not have been stressed or worried, but she would have gained confidence in her abilities to get the job done.
Why Does This Matter So Much?
Independence and Freedom
The goal is financial independence, so you need to stop being so dependant. Clearly asking questions and learning is a good thing, but only after there has been some self-thought first. Being independent does not mean you never need others, it means you are capable of figuring out how to make it happen without others. It is a great skill to develop.
There Will Always Be Troubles
The list of issues that can come up with a group home can be longer than a football field. Furthermore, these are not all major issues like the roof of a house caving in or they can be minor issues like two tenants not getting along. Either way, you are going to have to be able to think about your situation and adapt to it.
Therefore, the person who is able to adapt the best to their surroundings is going to win every time. If you are not adapting then you are losing.