Monday, February 14, 2011

Have a Back Up Plan

My mother passed away on January 26, 2011. I was unable to work for two weeks as I traveled to Illinois to attend to family matters and the funeral services. As a freelance writer, being gone for two weeks meant contacting clients and explaining my absence. I don't have employees depending me. What if I had, though? How would my company have survived during those two weeks?

Life throws us all kinds of curves. Small business owners must be prepared. If you had to be absent for any length of time, how would your business continue? You cannot make yourself so indispensable that your business would collapse if something happened to take you away for a while. A contingency plan must be in place before the unexpected happens. Trusted employees must be trained in all aspects of the business. Small business owners tend to be a controlling lot. That is what makes for success. It's difficult to give up the idea that, as the owner, you are the most important cog in the wheel. While that's true in essence, ensuring that your business can run without you is vital.

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