The positive effect of Corona
We started the new season in the Netherlands with relief, with schools and offices reopening after the summer holidays. Slowly we were able to save Covid-19 as a memory… or not?
Unfortunately, we have to put up the screens in the store again, ask customers to wear a face mask again and give each other space in our small bakery by waiting for each other. To feed positive energy, at this moment, I would like to share the wise lessons that I have learned from Covid-19.
Ambition, exploring new things, taking risks, experimenting, and constantly networking. Those are the things that I associate entrepreneurship with. This adventurous view of entrepreneurship is the main reason I chose this path at the age of 23 instead of a ‘safe’ 9-5 pm job behind a barricade of screens. In 2019, I had just that: a safe, stable company with more screen time than I wanted. You could say, what is there to complain about?
Apart from being jarring: isn’t it too comfortable, safe, and boring? But why should I change it, and especially how? I had no inspiration or motivation. Most importantly, I found it increasingly difficult to change my business and operations. My vocabulary became limited to “but,” “maybe later,” “I don’t have the money for this” more and more in response to suggestions and ideas. And as annoying as I thought it was, I couldn’t turn it around.
I still remember how someone described me in my starting entrepreneur phase:
“Entrepreneurship is in your blood; you think in solutions and possibilities, not in problems and obstacles.”
How did I get that internal enterprising daredevil?
BAM! Corona banged on the door and didn’t give much breathing room. Wake up, look for new ideas, make new contacts, come on, Faryel – TAKE ACTION!! With tears rolling down my cheek, I watched the first press conference from the tower. All restaurants and bars closed, no parties, offices closed…. What now?!
In a period of 3 weeks, my company was examined and adapted. I thought it was terrifying. Together with other business owners, I started the so-called support your local’s box, in which our bakery was transformed into an actual packing department.
In addition, we focused on online shopping, fast delivery, online gift shopping and adapted our collection to create possibilities for ordering (mixed) sweets for small groups, per the restrictions permitted, of course.
It hasn’t all been easy. And not everyone is back to doing business with certainty yet. But when I think about why I find life as an entrepreneur so interesting, I am happy with my personal and entrepreneurial response to COVID-19. The following 3 weeks will put me to the test again. But thanks to all the support from my customers, my team, the home front, family, and friends, I’m still here, the bakery is still in production, and the webshop is set up again for the winter and holidays 2021. Feel free to take a look :).
If I think about this often enough, I flow full of positive energy to round off the year with a bang. So keep an eye on the website and the newsletter for new, exciting, and surprising developments!
I realize that I do business in an industry that also ‘stayed on’ during the pandemic. Because who doesn’t want cake? Still, I hope my story inspires and motivates you, Jessica. And although I am certainly not a coach or supervisor, I like to think along with other entrepreneurs about new, creative yet relatively quick, and straightforward solutions that can be implemented/developed. So if you want to spar while enjoying a nice cup of tea (possibly coffee for you as I’m a real tea lover), please get in touch with me! We can learn so much from each other!
Talk to you soon!
Faryel
