Q&A With Johnathan Tal: What we are advising our clients now and what lessons we learned from 2020?

If we look back through the history of our country, we see there have been many turning points when something happened that changed everything going forward. The stock market crash in 1929 was one. The bombing of Pearl Harbor another. But the most recent turning point, before the pandemic, was 9/11. Prior to that, no foreign power or entity had ever succeeded in attacking the continental United States.

We have learned many lessons from these incidents as well as incidents that have happened this year. Among those that we share with our corporate and high-worth clients are the following:

We are not invulnerable. We are not an impregnable fortress, protected from attacks of an adversary, or right now, from the attack of a disease.

We are all connected. What happens to people in China, Italy, or Spain or those living in scores of other countries can, in one way or another, impact personal and business welfare and finances of people here in the U.S. While many in our country have resisted globalization and would prefer our country be an island unto itself, it is not; and if this ever were true, it will likely never be true again.

We will get through this. Many people gave up on America during the Great Depression. The first two years of World War II were so difficult for Americans that reporters were asked to look for good news, to find something to give people back home some hope. We are a resilient country. While we are still very fractured, it is even possible that the pandemic will bring more of us together. It happened after 9/11. It can happen again.

The better prepared will be the ones who do better. Those who prepare are able to fare better and have favorable outcomes. This applies to personal preparedness, security, health and safety, as well as all other aspects of life and business.   

Set up a safe room at your house. Creating a safe room and drilling an evacuation plan from the house to a safe location, forming a communication plan are all parts of being prepared. If you do all these things in advance, you will fare better during a crisis.

We are also advising our corporate executive clients to do everything they can now to protect their businesses, their employees, themselves, and their families, as well as their personal welfare and finances. 

But once those areas are shored up, at least as much as possible, they must have a vision and prepare for what's next.  

Here's a perfect example.

A good two decades ago, Apple Computer was struggling. Manufacturers from all over the world were introducing computers and taking market share away from Apple. Steve Jobs was certainly revered, but his status as the "golden boy" of the computer industry appeared to be fading. 

What people did not know is that by the 1990s, Jobs was already focusing on something entirely different. His attention was not on the current industry or his situation, but on the iPod and the iPhone. He concentrated on what would be next, and in this case, he was amazingly successful.

This focusing on the future and "what's next" will help companies and individuals become much more resilient, especially now as we make our way through this pandemic. Here are some other suggestions we offer our clients:

Spend time envisioning your future. Uncertainty, such as what we are undergoing now, makes it tempting for many business executives as well as high-worth individuals to micro-manage their businesses and their affairs. They keep seeing the trees, and never look up to see the forest. Devote a certain amount of time – every week – to envision your personal and organizational future.

Be able to pivot. As we all are learning through these challenging times, no one has all the answers. What appears to be a good idea or assumption now, may prove faulty down the road. We advise our clients to keep monitoring and measuring their short- and long-term goals for themselves and their businesses. If they see signals that things are not working out as planned, be ready to change directions. Speed and agility are key more than ever today.

Focus on security. No long-term goals can be achieved – or can even be envisioned - if personal and corporate security is an issue. Make sure you are well-protected as well as your employees and your facilities. More specifically, create (if you do not already have) a security plan, an emergency plan, and an evacuation plan, and test these plans periodically to see if they work. Modify as needed.

Secure resources. Engage NOW with a firm that can provide services at times when starting a relationship will be a challenge. Consider retaining a firm to be there for you and your family when civil unrest is a threat, crime is rising, or you need to evacuate from a certain location.

Review current security with a view to future needs. View corporate security as a journey, always needing refinement, updating, and changing as warranted.

Have expert advice on what may be needed if conditions change. For example: if you cannot rely on law enforcement to respond, what alternatives are available? Vet and engage corporate security vendors ahead of time.

Have a vision for your staff. This applies primarily to our corporate clients and the top executives in these companies. Your employees need you more now than ever before. They are turning to you to see a brighter future for themselves and the company. This is the perfect time for you to share your long-term vision for the company. It will help inspire them, strengthen their focus on the company’s purpose, and build loyalty so that, together, you will be able to ride out this pandemic.

To "Talk to Us" Simply Click on the Image Below