There are a few words related to business start-ups and small business growth that I have come to detest.

PIVOT is at the top of my list.   For some, it’s discriminatory.    For some, it can be disempowering.    It risks fostering a bad case of imposter-syndrome in some people (what’s the secret I’m not in on people?).

Right now, not every small business can pivot during the pandemic.

I suggest we replace this five-letter word with a word much more applicable across all small businesses, regardless of where they are at. Let’s swap pivot with…

B  R  A  V  E

You may not have been able to organise home deliveries and take-away meals. You may not be able to do something different other than your core business as a hair stylist.  You may not be able to switch from making gourmet ice-cream to hand sanitizer.  However, if you have thought about how you, your staff and your business might look in this new normal then you most certainly are BRAVE. That’s something we can all relate to. That’s something worth talking about and that’s something we are all experiencing.

As the effects of the pandemic roll on, JobKeeper ends, grants and subsidies finish and you find you may have to close the doors – remember, you have been incredibly BRAVE.

If you recognise that it’s going to take a long time to rebuild your customer base – remember, you have been incredibly BRAVE to think about that.

If you wonder if customers will ever return because doing business has irrevocably changed – remember, you have been BRAVE to consider that.

If you have made changes, and your doors are open in this new-normal business environment – remember, you have been BRAVE facing the new frontier.

If you worry you don’t know what you’re doing in this new working world – remember, being BRAVE is a fantastic first step.

In the meantime, let’s leave the word PIVOT where it belongs – on the stairs.

By the way, if you want a pivot sticker like the picture in this post, please check out The Foxy Hipster – fantastic!