There is no escaping that everything is changing rapidly in our world right now. As COVID-19 becomes a world-wide pandemic, we are all being forced to adapt our ways of coping and surviving. This is new territory for us and many of us are feeling the weight of the unknown as we wade through the predictions of the weeks and months ahead.

COVID-19 is a health tragedy that is sweeping our planet. I can’t begin to list the numbers here because, by the time this episode airs, they will be drastically different. But the numbers are even more than confirmed cases and lost lives: they are also lost jobs, lost income, lost opportunities, and lost housing. COVID-19 is also an acute economic crisis with great potential for long term consequences. We all have a lot of questions. Everything is changing so much, day to day, that our usual ways of planning for our business feel impossible. I wish I had answers, but I am in the same boat you are. I am watching the CDC guidelines, I am watching the market, I am trying to hold my community, and I am trying to make the best choices.

While I can’t offer answers, I do use this episode to offer some basic tips and predictions about how to adapt our businesses to a culture of social distancing. I talk about quick ways to move your business online and what structures I suspect will be the most accessible to the most people, moving forward.

In this episode, I also wanted to explore some of the questions I see circling in my business community. I discuss the ethics and values we center, as soul-centered business owners, in a time of crisis. I have some strong opinions about ethics and community values when it comes to making money. I believe business owners are leaders and, as such, we have responsibilities. I want us to move through the paralysis of guilt and fear, into adaptation. I want us to be successful so that mutual aid is possible. I want us to have hope on the other side of this.

As always, let’s hold that everyone has different needs and different situations. There is no single way to act or to live right now. We can only care for each other if we talk publicly about what is needed and what is working. Tune into this episode and then join the conversation.

SHOW NOTES

2:32– Ethics and values

8:43– Binary thinking in a pandemic

12:57– Online business tips

16:01– Planning and prioritizing in the pandemic

This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit sarahmchappell.substack.com