Welcome to the World of Weird

Welcome to the world of weird.

That’s the best way to put it. Business is just weird right now. Everyone is acting like we’re in a recession. But we aren’t. At least not an economic one. So, what exactly is happening? Let’s break it down.

A recession of confidence

We are living through a kind of “anticipatory paralysis.” A confidence recession, if you will. Businesses are bracing for impact without knowing what the impact will be, when it will come, or whether it will come at all.

COVID didn’t do us any favors when it comes to teaching us how to deal with a looming crisis. It taught us that the safest way forward was to hunker down. Staying quiet. Avoiding risk. At that time, it was the way to protect ourselves. Don’t go anywhere. Don’t do anything unnecessary. Protect yourself – or the consequences will be dire. 

Now, we’re in a different set of circumstances. We’re living through wars, tariffs, political upheaval, fires, economic volatility, surging grocery prices and whatever else you want to throw onto the burning building. It’s no wonder people feel the way they did right before lockdown.

“Something is coming. We just don’t know what…”

Business is mirroring this anxiety: Don’t start anything that will take too long to implement. Don’t make a decision you can’t reverse. Don’t take a risk. Wait and see what happens tomorrow. Maybe AI can solve this for us. But we have to wait and see.

Wait. And then wait some more.

A strange contradiction

The result is a strange contradiction: enormous urgency without meaningful action. Decisions aren’t being made. Brand priorities aren’t being met. Projects are discussed, scoped, reconsidered…and quietly pushed into another quarter.

Everyone agrees something needs to change, but no one wants to be responsible for choosing what.

The world is uncertain. There’s no denying that. It isn’t a particularly happy, healthy, or predictable place right now. Anyone claiming otherwise probably isn’t paying attention.

Waiting is not a strategy

But waiting for certainty is not a strategy. And let’s be honest here: certainty isn’t coming any time soon.

So, what can businesses do in this moment of frozen weirdness?

1. Pick one thing and move it forward.
   Choose something that feels doable, manageable, and achievable and commit to making it happen. You don’t need to tackle the whole list of things that need to be done, you just need to pick one thing. Progress creates evidence. Evidence builds conviction. And conviction makes the next decision easier. Don’t try to transform your entire company by the end of the quarter. Just find one proof point that the company can still move. Then do it.

2. Stop treating every decision like it’s permanent.
   Most decisions are not irreversible. They’re simply the next best choice based on what you know right now. So, make the decision. Set a checkpoint. Pay attention to what happens. Then course correct if you need to and start again. When you reduce the size and time constraints of a decision, it suddenly makes action feel less dangerous without making it meaningless. You’re not recklessly gambling away your company’s success. You’re creating momentum and learning your way forward in this moment of weird.

3. Decide what you will not wait for.
   Your customers are still forming opinions. Your team is still interpreting your choices. Your culture is still being shaped. Your brand is still making promises and is either keeping them or breaking them.

So, what are the priorities that are too important to leave waiting while the world sorts itself out?

Inaction doesn’t preserve the status quo. It creates its own consequences. The businesses that move forward won’t be the ones that correctly predict what happens next. They’ll be the ones willing to make clear choices, learn quickly, and adapt without losing sight of who they are.

It’s time to DO things again. Make the decision. Unstick your team. Take action in the face of uncertainty.

Do you want some help unsticking yourself or your business? Let’s make it happen together. Contact Big Squirrel and to get started.