Navigating Turmoil: Opportunities in Crisis

Political and economic turmoil creates both business destruction and opportunity is the insight of well-established business leaders. Instability is known to birth resourcefulness and innovation. And real entrepreneurs are those who are able to find opportunities in times of challenges and create and grow their business. While it also requires that extra level of competitiveness and efficiency, times of constraints also demand that you know what to keep and what to let go. 
I often draw parallels of the business world from the code of the Samurai which is focused not just on strength and agency but on how the mind works. Here, winning is not just about how aggressive you are, instead, it concentrates on the mind, the place where our daily battles are fought. The Samurai’s talk about building a resilient personality that can deal with uncertainty, contradiction and stress, but with a solid understanding of what they are doing and with a clear and unwavering focus on the goal.
  Often quickly changing and volatile politics in a country demands that people in business have the fluidity and flexibility to adapt to different problems and policy changes. It requires a successful entrepreneur to be able to interpret changes from different points of view and reformulate strategies while assessing opportunities and threats. 
Crisis also demands that you seize high value opportunities before your competitors do. It requires that you process changes and act decisively. The Covid 19 saw so many new businesses open and grow. What caught my attention the most was the deftness with which some people entered and exited from business while making profits and serving the need of the hour. Those who entered late and lingered longer had to contend with losses. 
Most importantly, not all crises are equal, sometimes prolonged turmoil can go against the best business minds. Filling a market void is what business is all about. But a wrong idea, product or service, ahead or behind its time, can turn into your own battlefield. 
Above all, the greatest win is when you are able to stay committed to your integrity and values in a challenging ecosystem in business, and in life.