For any business owner, getting injured or being sick is one of the most unfortunate inconveniences. As much as possible, you want to be physically present in the office to manage your staff and daily operations.
When considering how to protect one’s livelihood, some even hire an estate-planning attorney to plan for difficult or unique circumstances, such as asset protection and wealth-transfer strategies.
Given the important role of business owners in managing day-to-day business operations, we’ll discuss how to run your business whether you’re injured or under the weather.
Decide what you can get done
Business owners who are very passionate about what they do never let any inconvenience affect their normal functioning. But coming to work when you’re sick or injured can even make things worse for your health and safety. The last thing you want is to prolong your absence and stay at home for longer.
If your current health status prevents you from managing your business, it’s important to figure out what you can and cannot do. This means checking in with your calendar, deadlines, and to-do list to determine what you can accomplish in a timely and realistic manner.
With so many digital platforms to use, there’s always a tool to make your everyday tasks easier. If your employees are holding an event that requires your participation, you can set up a video conference on your laptop or phone. Despite the geographical distance, you can still make your presence felt without being physically present.
If you want to monitor the daily progress of your staff, you can use a work management platform or business communication software that allows you to organize, track, plan, review project tasks while improving your team performance and business goals.
Still, you have to make sure not to overdo your responsibilities to avoid worsening your condition further. Know your limits to experience faster recovery.
Inform your employees, clients, and suppliers
It can be tempting to keep your condition a secret to avoid looking unprofessional or weak among your employees, clients, and other business colleagues. Whether you like it or not, you have to inform everyone concerned about your health condition, so they can make necessary adjustments when needed.
If you can still function amid your health situation, inform them you cannot work at top speed at the moment. Do this by posting a status update on social media or sending a private message via email or text message. The goal is to choose a communication channel that appears convenient and makes you feel comfortable. Write a few sentences describing in detail your health condition.
You would even be surprised how many people will reach out to you to ask how they could help. If you have a deadline or meeting coming up, tell them right away if they reschedule it until you have recovered. As much as possible, be forthcoming when explaining your status and give yourself some wiggle room to get things done.
For those working with a supplier, give them a heads up on how your employees will keep the business running in your absence. If you don’t need additional supplies until you recover, inform them immediately. Meanwhile, those working with major clients should inform them who will take your place temporarily until you return. This would avoid any misunderstandings if they showed up in your office without seeing you there.
Assign a temporary head
There’s nothing wrong with asking for a little help. Once you realize it’s possible to do things as planned, assign a temporary head to keep the business together, especially if you have a physical office with a fairly large workforce. Whether you’re feeling good or under the weather, a reliable support group to outsource or delegate will keep your business running smoothly.
You don’t want any friction to happen in the office when you’re away. So appointing a temporary head who is hardworking, diligent, and flexible enough to make bigger decisions will give you peace of mind that they will get things done amid your absence.
When appointing someone to take your place, make sure to get the approval of your staff members first. A temporary change in management can upset people, causing employees to disobey orders from someone they don’t like. Thus, take time to figure out the most suitable person to make big decisions in your business.
Applying the tips above guarantees your business will run smoothly without much hassle. Still, you have to look after yourself to avoid these unfortunate consequences. Once you return, don’t forget to reward your staff for helping your business run smoothly even without your hands-on management. This will encourage everyone to do better if the same event happens again.
