I don’t know what is going on. I have never experienced a cash flow challenge like this – ever!
He sits across from me in the coffee shop, a picture of abject misery. All his creativity shut down, all his drive gone; hopeless, powerless. So what am I going to do? What would you do?
Whoa safari! I respond, breaking the negative spiral that is beginning to form. Tell me about last month.
Last month was better. There was at least enough cash to pay the bills, but this month I don’t even know how I am going to pay my staff. OK, I respond, refusing to be drawn into his problem, How about the previous month? The previous month was OK. Good, how about next month? Next month will be good he says beginning to rise from his gloomy bog. There are some good deals coming through and the money will begin to flow again.
So, I said, this is not a Permanent situation. No he says pensively, I guess not.
Tell me about the rest of your life? What do you mean? Well, how is your relationship going? Oh, that is going so cool. We talk all the time … she is so great. It’s like we already know what the other is going to say. So that area of your life is working, that’s’ great. Yes, and I am training to swim the ‘Midmar Mile’ and feeling pretty strong.
So it is just the business that is troubling you right now. Yes, but I have built up a pretty strong show here. What do you mean? Well I have some great developers and all my guys are loyal. We have not lost a person this whole year, despite the cash flow crunch. Great … so it’s just your finance department? No, not really. My bookkeeper is top notch. I mean she is so on the ball that I can leave all of that stuff to her and know that it will get done.
Great so your problem is not Permanent, nor is it Pervasive. What do you mean? Well, the problem is not your whole life, just your business? Yes. And it is not your whole business, just your finances? Yes. And it is not your whole finance department; it is just your cash flow? Yes. And it is just this month. Yeesss – this time with some enthusiasm!
So tell me, how did this happen? What do you mean? Well, you called up all your customers and told them not to pay you this month because you were choosing to experience a cash flow challenge? No why would I do that? OK, then you must have goofed off this entire year and not brought in any new business? No, I told you, I have some good deals starting to roll in.
OK, so it must be because you are too stupid to run your own business! How can you say that, I have successfully grown this business for twelve years now?
So it is not Personal then. What do you mean? Well you are still responsible for sorting out the problem, but you are not to blame for the problem. The problem has not come about because you are too stupid, too fat, too unlovable, too undeserving … it is not Personal. That’s right!
So this situation is not Permanent … its going to get better, and soon? Yes!
Neither is it pervasive across your entire life. It is localized to your cash flow? Yes!
Nor is it Personal … the situation did not arise because of something that you are or are not? NO, but I am still responsible for sorting it out!
Right … so what is your plan?
Martin Seligman, a psychologist in the US and author of “Learned Helplessness” is one of the good guys because he sells hope and not more of the problem. He tells us that because of our conditioning, we end up “P’ing/” all over ourselves. We become helpless and powerless because we perceive our problems to be permanent; pervasive and personal. From this emotional state, we feel powerless to act.
You see, no problem is bigger than you are, but we shut ourselves down because we feel that it is hopeless. The situation is here to stay and is never going to improve. We feel powerless because it seems that nothing in our lives is working and what ever we are doing will not change the situation. We feel useless because the situation seems to remind us of all the old conditioning that tells us that we are useless, not-good-enough, unlovable; undeserving and worse.
From this emotional state, we are shut down to any solutions. Our creativity is rock bottom, our resourcefulness is buried deep under a plummeting negative downward spiral and we feel powerless to stop it.
The key? Challenge the status quo. Challenge your assumptions about the permanence, the pervasiveness and how you are personally to blame for the situation.
From this new state of taking back his power, my client has not yet solved his problem … the cash flow challenge is still very real, but he has now reclaimed his creativity and is now in a much better place to find a resourceful solution.
I can ask my suppliers for some leeway! I can ask my customers for a 50% deposit before I start work! I can ask the bank for some short term bridging support! I can … the possibilities are out there!
How about You? What assumptions are keeping you stuck…