We were recently reminded of a quote that has survived for nearly 400 years: “No man is an island.”
The poet John Donne preached this statement in 1642 while giving a sermon at St. Paul’s Cathedral.
The full breadth of that quote is: “No man is an island, entire of itself; every man is a piece of the continent, a part of the main; if a clod be washed away by the sea, Europe is the less, as well as if a promontory were, as well as if a manor of thy friend’s or of thine own were; any man’s death diminishes me, because I am involved in mankind, and therefore never send to know for whom the bell tolls; it tolls for thee.” (You might recognize another phrase here, which was later used as a title for one of Ernest Hemingway’s most famous works.)
The greatest comfort that one can draw from Donne’s prose is that no one is alone, truly alone. There is always someone, some organization, some business, that is ready to help.
Today, as dueling news stations deliver warnings of dire economic circumstances, seesawing stock markets and the prospect of a global recession, we wish to offer this reminder:
Breathe.
Breathe deeply.
And then take a step back to look at your big picture with fresh eyes and an open mind.
Especially an open mind.
There are steps you can take. These steps were posted on a website from across the pond, but the questions that clinical entrepreneur Dr. Sandeep Bansal prompts health care practitioners to ask can easily be adapted, in their simplest terms, to nearly any profession or business enterprise:
1. Why are you trying to do this on your own?
2. What are the opportunities to grow your innovation (i.e., business)?
3. How might a partnership be mutually beneficial?
Obviously, you’ll need to do some soul searching to answer these questions as honestly as possible. We would also suggest that you approach this task as you would a brainstorming session, keeping in mind that no suggestion is too far-fetched to at least make it onto the whiteboard.
Some of your craziest ideas might turn out to be your best.
Some of your most predictable, book-smart answers might fall flat.
You just never really know until you open your mind to new possibilities.
And, when you’ve come up with your list of maybes, give us a call at 801-545-4000. Because if you’re wondering how to help your business survive the storm of financial uncertainty happening in the current economy, we have some ideas. We can help you take a step back, once again, to view your possibilities from a financing point of view.