What do you think? From emerging trends to the latest business principles, Furniture News is setting out to gauge the trade’s feelings on a variety of industry-specific topics. Today, we’re asking our panel: How do you stay optimistic when faced with bad news?
Nichola Bell (Alpha Designs Upholstery): That depends on the degree of bad news. I try to be a grateful person, so I often have a little word with myself and put things into perspective, try to engage some Christian values, and then usually follow it up with a nice glass of red wine!
Steve Adams (Mattress Online): By taking a holistic view and tackling the problem one bite at a time
Andrew Kerr (Siren Furniture): By remaining positive, undefeated, and proactively exploring all potential solutions
Andy Stockwell (Gardiner Haskins): It is what it is. You can’t change what has already happened, you can only make a difference to how things move forwards. Accept the situation, learn the lessons and move on
Carole Nolan (Maze Outdoor): Always look for the positive
Greg French (Westgarth Furniture): There will always be brighter days. What you do now in business will often have an effect in the months and years ahead, so don’t be so concerned about the here and now if you’re working hard on the right things
Tim Hobbs (Prestige Furniture Logistics): Keep working hard and keep building client relationships through good and bad times
Jerry Cheshire (bed and mattress expert): When the sh*t hits the fan, go back to the plan
Jonny Staker (Vanquish): By understanding that ‘all things pass’. There’s no recession or downturn we’ve not already been through and worse, and people succeed and fail during them just the same
Mike Murray (Land of Beds): First, I seek support from loved ones who provide comfort and encouragement. Engaging in self-care activities helps me restore my wellbeing and resilience. Instead of dwelling on negative events beyond my control, I focus on what I can influence, channelling my energy towards positive actions. Helping others through charitable donations or lending a helping hand also brings a sense of purpose and positivity. Lastly, maintaining a positive mindset involves challenging negative thoughts and reframing them into more optimistic or realistic perspectives. Remembering that nothing is forever, and that perspective is key, keeps me hopeful in difficult times
Nick Williams (Sweet Dreams): I try to focus on the positive side of the business – there are always opportunities, even in the most dire of marketplaces
Steve Pickering (Sussex Beds): Resilience is a key attribute for any CEO or business owner. For every success there are dozens more failures. Failure is simply the journey to success. I’m not saying I don’t get down or fed up when things don’t work or go to plan – but this is short lived. I get up, dust off, learn from the experience and move forward. Remember, it took 39 failures for the inventors of WD40 to get the formula right!
Nicolle Hockin (Devonshire): This is a terrible cliche, but bad news is just an opportunity to reflect, spot new opportunities, and adapt. We need the odd bit of negativity in order to grow and make improvements
Paul Little (Airsprung Beds): Optimism always sounds a bit passive. It’s about hard work, creativity and teamwork. Then you have to trust the process, and I find that at times like that a good team will turn things around
Brian Levitt (Brian Levitt Sales Agencies): Look for the positive, and work on that option. Life moves on
Peter Harding (Fairway Furniture): Having managed the business through a seemingly endless succession of ‘bad news’ events, I’ve become accustomed to smiling in the face of adversity. As a leader, you have to stay positive, encouraging and motivating your teams to continue to deliver success. Adversity can often bring about changes which drive innovation and instil fresh impetus
Jonathan Burrage (Purple Octopus Business Solutions): Hurdles provide opportunities to review and grow. As long as the bad news doesn’t keep repeating itself, they’re often the moments that drive positive change in a business
Sam Jackson (Bluebone Imports): Carefully and thoughtfully analyse the issue to determine and extract the positive feature, then align and motivate the entire workforce to continue in a positive direction
James Dunne (Prestige Beds): I try to approach everything with a positive mindset, and the belief that anything bad that happens will soon pass and there is always a solution. From it, lessons are learned. We grow when we face challenges
This article featured in the July 2024 edition of Furniture News magazine.
