There is an old Yorkshire saying ‘if in doubt do nowt’, but in these turbulent political times is that the wisest advice for those in business?

Clearly the current Brexit negotiations are making people nervous and the posturing and posing of both sides is not really helping give any clarity, so what to do?

Well, I really like this quote from Warren Buffett, a man who knows about timing investment.

“The key to investing is not assessing how much an industry is going to affect society, or how much it will grow, but rather determining the competitive advantage of any given company and, above all, the durability of that advantage.”

For me that is fantastic advice, focus on your company and determine what competitive advantage you have and how you differentiate yourself within the market you operate in.

If you can clearly identify that advantage and make the difference durable and sustainable then you should absolutely be seeking to invest in and grow your company.

In fact it is an ideal time to do that when other companies are hesitating and stuttering around deciding what to do.

If on the other hand you don’t glean any inspiration from that quote and can’t see where your company is differentiated, you may want to be a little more cautious in how you move forward and take the time to review your operation and think about how you can make your company stand out from the competition.

Is it your people, your fleet profile, your software integration, your flexibility?

Whatever it may be, there will be something within your operation that you believe makes you different, go back to why you started your company, that could well be the reason right there, because you believed you could do a better job. Either way you need to find a basis to move forward because if you are not growing your company you are ultimately slowly sliding backwards.

In summary, I don’t believe doing nothing is currently the best option, that being said the steps you do take to grow your company should be well thought out with a proper strategy that has taken account of as much available information as possible and contains robust financial modelling.

The current situation is not about to change drastically overnight as there is going to be a transition period. Based on what you know, if you factor the what ifs in to your strategy you will be prepared and be two years further along bigger and stronger.

Do you feel like you might need a little extra support and advice? Get in touch, I’ll be more than happy to provide a free business health check for your business to discuss any queries you have.