It is believed that El Nino may have contributed to the 1993 Mississippi and 1995 California floods, drought conditions in South America, Africa and Australia. It is also believed that El Nino contributed to the lack of serious storms such as hurricanes in the North Atlantic which spared states like Florida from serious storm related damage.

Akin to every storm attributed to El Nino, every loss in the business world is lamented as the latest prey of the wretched economy.

Ebb & Flow

It’s easy to blame the economy for less than ideal profits.  And, similar to weather patterns, the economy does seem to have a sort of natural (and inevitable) ebb and flow.  It is futile to resist it.  However, that does not mean that your business has to ebb and flow accordingly.  Desperate times call for creative measures.  You may not have as many resources as you’d ideally like, but every company has the same amount of one invaluable resource: time.  No one has figured out how to get more than 24 hours from a day. Unfortunately, most employees have figured out a way to get even less time on the job: distractions.  Whether it was technology (emails, phones, cells, texts, messaging services) conversations, or good old fashioned interruptions, in 2008 an estimated $600 billion were lost to distractions.

Make a change

If you’re not okay with that number or your business’s contribution to it, consider cutting back on company-wide distractions.  Whether it’s restructuring the office (saying farewell to cubicles) or alternative solutions such as sound masking, it’s time to be productive again.   Don’t be another victim- be proactive.