How to pivot from anxiety to action

Specific tactics for regaining control in uncertain times

Author

Courtney Howard
March 26, 2025

In the March 2025 edition:

  • What’s that in the air? No, not spring—it’s economic uncertainty. Keep reading for specific strategies for navigating challenging times 🫣

  • How I Built This is one of the best business podcasts out there. Did you know they recently launched an advice show for small business owners? 💡

  • The Office is a classic comfort show, but it wasn’t that successful at the beginning. Here’s the story of the how the first season was created, even though no one thought it would work 📺

SOMETHING USEFUL

How to pivot from anxiety to action

Do you feel it? That change in the air—you can see the signs everywhere you look. No, I’m not talking about spring. What I’m seeing everywhere is uncertainty.

In the news, in conversations with my clients, and in my own business, there’s a clear difference between how the future looked six months ago and how it appears today.

On & off tariffs, pullbacks on consumer and business spending, rising costs. Not to mention whatever the hell is going on with the US Small Business Administration. They seem more focused on cruelly vilifying immigrants and “DEI” than supporting small business owners.

So how do we build resilience in the face of this uncertainty? I’ve been working on this within Catbird, but I want to pull the curtain back and share some strategies and tactics with all of you.

My strategy is to pivot as quickly as possible from anxiety to action. Taking targeted, and ideally cost-free, actions that get results. Today I’m sharing both specific actions that apply to all types of businesses. Let’s dig in.

Building momentum

The first step is identifying the specific business results you’re working towards—increasing revenue, gaining customer awareness, growing your network, or something else? Once you have your results in mind, you can identify actions to take to pursue that result.

To help with this, I’ve created a “menu” of 5 universally-relevant business goals with specific actions tied to those goals. Given the economic uncertainty we’re experiencing, all of these actions are 100% free.

Check out the menu and find the actions that are most aligned with your ideal outcomes. Then, commit to trying 1 or 2 of them each week.

What’s on the menu

Goal: Connect more deeply with your community.

Personal connections are a crucial source of resilience during difficult times. Whether you’re suggesting a collaboration idea or offering solidarity, a lot can come from a simple email or in-person visit.

  • Reach out to folks in your business community to introduce yourself or reconnect if you haven’t chatted in a while. Neighbors, owners of related businesses, or even customers you haven't seen lately—building community and nurturing connections is always a good move.

  • If you’ve been thinking of asking someone to do a collaboration or partnership, or to become referral partners, now is a great time. “Community over competition” is a bit of a cliché, but that’s because it’s true.

  • If you’re looking to increase sales, connect with your warm leads—people who have expressed interest in your work, but haven’t followed through yet. Send them a friendly, no-pressure note. You may be surprised how many people really do want to work with you, but they just needed a reminder.

Remember that everyone is busy and emails can slip through the cracks. Don’t be afraid to send a follow up (or two), or to reach out to more people if the first few folks aren’t responsive.

Goal: Introduce your business to new customers.

This is an obvious one—in order to sustain a business, you need to consistently find new customers. Paid advertising isn’t the only way to do this, however. If you’re a bit creative, you can get your business noticed by new customers without spending any money.

  • Volunteer to be interviewed in or write a guest post for an email newsletter your target customers subscribe to. Collaborate with the newsletter author to share something valuable with their audience, while introducing them to your business.

  • Reach out to someone you know whose business serves similar customers to yours, and pitch an idea for a shared social media post. Your follower groups may be different enough that it will benefit you to “borrow” each other’s audiences.

  • Apply or pitch to be a guest on a podcast your customers listen to. Suggest a few topic options for the host, so they can see you’ve done your homework and get a sense of what you’re able to bring to their show.

  • Pitch an article idea to a local publication your customers read. Community papers, magazines, blogs, and newsletters are great options.

For all of these—if you get a “no” (or no answer) on your first try, don’t stop there. Keep asking for opportunities.

Goal: Solve new problems for your existing customers.

Finding new customers is essential, but so is retaining your current customers. And it’s a lot easier to continue serving someone who already knows you and values what you do.

  • Meet your customers where they are. Are they spending less than they used to? Offer lower-priced products or services that fit their budget. Have their needs shifted? Talk to them about what’s changed, and find ways to offer solutions. (This is particularly relevant for service-based businesses.)

  • Offer creative, customized solutions targeted specifically to your current customers. Can you curate your products to help someone who needs wedding party gifts? Can you create a bespoke at-home routine for a customer who’s trying to improve their mobility? What’s the version of this question that relates to your business?

  • Consider ways to offer more affordable, “lite” versions of your products or services instead of offering discounts that cut into your profit margin. Make sure you’re not investing the same amount of money, time, or energy in something that customers are paying less for.

Goal: Communicate your value proposition effectively.

Uncertain economic times make customers think twice about spending. It’s our job to communicate the value of our work and build trust with our customers so they feel confident that they’re getting what they paid for.

  • Reach out to your customers for testimonials or online reviews (Google, Facebook, etc.) Positive reviews go a long way toward building trust with, and communicating your value to, prospective customers. Display testimonials prominently on your website.

  • If you provide services, describe the outcomes and benefits of those services clearly on your website. Even better, create a simple Services Guide that you can share in PDF form or post on social media (I’m working on one of these right now).

  • Audit your website, social profiles, and anywhere else you show up online. Does your messaging need an update? Is it immediately clear what you sell, who you serve, where you are (if you have a physical location), why someone should buy from you, and what they get for their money?

  • Make sure your website is working hard for you. Even interested customers may decide not to buy if they’re uncertain, if something looks off, or if the purchasing process is unclear. Include plenty of product/service information and make everything as easy and straightforward as possible.

Goal: Invest in the future by moving a long-term project forward.

Maybe it’s a little counter-intuitive, but this could be a great time to move the ball forward on a long-term project. Especially if you’re in a slower season, use that time to explore new ideas or learn something.

  • Take a few hours to research an idea that’s been bouncing around in your head. Once you learn more about it, you can decide whether you want to pursue it or move it to the “don’t do” list permanently.

  • Find new ways to use an existing business tool. Whether it’s your website platform, video editor, email service provider, or bookkeeping app, there’s always something to learn when it comes to business apps and tools.

  • If you’ve had your eye on a new app or software solution that might make something easier in your business, sign up for the free trial and test it out.

There’s no doubt that uncertainty is growing, and I know a lot of us are feeling unsettled about what the future holds for us and our businesses. But we have agency, and we have the ability to create change.

The sooner we can pivot away from worry and anxiety and toward goal-driven action, the faster we can strengthen the foundation of our businesses and prepare ourselves to persist through whatever comes our way.

SOMETHING NEAT

When my husband and I were preparing to open our restaurant, I listened to How I Built This from Guy Raz constantly. My main takeaway was that many of the biggest and most successful companies were started by people who didn’t really know what they were doing—and that it’s ok to try something you’re unsure about.

Recently, the HIBT team has been making “Advice Line” episodes where they invite three small business owners to ask a successful CEO for business guidance. The advice is great, and so is the reminder that we all need help sometimes.

Try these episodes and let me know what you think:

And a bonus for my food entrepreneurs: What it Really Takes to Build a Food Business, Part 1

A LITTLE TREAT

The Office is such an iconic show for me and my fellow Millennials, so it’s hard to imagine that its success was ever in doubt. But of course, there was no guarantee it would be popular—in fact, the entire premise and the fact that it was a remake of a British show was…kind of weird. Creating it was a complete leap of faith for everyone involved.

I love stories like this because they’re a reminder that even the highest-rated, most loved projects are wholly unpredictable at the beginning. Even if you’re not an Office fan, there’s something to learn from this look back at the creation of the first season (and it’s really fun to read!):

WORK WITH ME

This newsletter is for everyone, but a one-on-one consulting engagement is tailored to you and your business. Here’s how I can support you:

  • Strategic Action Planning—For solo business owners with a lot to do, and never enough time. We’ll refine, prioritize, and organize your goals, and I’ll create a road map for you to get them done. (My most popular service.)

  • Operations Analysis—Is your business built on a strong, long-lasting foundation? An operational deep dive will reveal any potential issues, and tell you exactly how to fix them.

  • General Consulting—Get expert support with business challenges like workload sustainability, financial fundamentals, pricing, client communication, and more. Like getting a personal trainer for your business.

Thanks for reading—see you next month. If you have a business owner friend who would find this newsletter useful, please share it with them!