In any business, you hope for things to go smoothly. You prepare for every possible situation; you think everything is going well and then it happens. The internet goes down. Your company car doesn't start. An employee quits unexpectedly. The office printer stopped working. As much as you prepare for potential issues, problems can arise anywhere at any time and sometimes all your prep still can't prevent an issue. What do you do?
The first thing you should do when a problem arises is to control your emotions. It's easy to get angry, upset and overreact when something happens, and this will cause more problems and issues. Remain as calm as possible, and the quicker you can stable your emotions, the quicker you can solve the problem.
Determine the root of the problem. Maybe there's something that can be easily fixed: Did someone accidentally unplug the router or modem that caused the internet outage? Is the printer just out of ink or paper or just needs to be restarted? Look for simple fixes to the problems. Not everything is going to be simple, however, and requires more time or effort, or perhaps someone with more knowledge.
Sometimes trying to fix a problem when you're inexperienced or not knowledgable in an area, you may create a bigger problem, so know your limitations and use other available resources, such as a more experienced employee or calling a professional service person.
To reiterate, problems can occur at any time and knowing how to handle them and controlling your emotions will prevent the issue from spiraling out of control and help get it resolved faster.
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