Adapt or Die

We live in such volatile economic times that if you cannot adapt you will not cope & eventually be forced to step out of the game. We are living in the “4th Industrial Revolution”, as the World Economic Forum 2016 says. In this revolution, technology & everything digital dominates the way of life & how we do business. Think about how business has evolved from the time where you needed to be physically in a shop to buy something, to now, where you can shop online.

Adapt or die.

If you are an entrepreneur in the retail sector you need to ensure that your business offers the customer the convenience of shopping online, because if you don’t, your competitors are already doing so you will lose a share of the market. It’s simple, adapt or die.

I grew up in the taxi industry & back then operating in this industry was relatively simple (minus the internal ‘quarrels’ over routes). Customers were found at the corner of the street, a taxi would pick them up, they paid cash & the customer had no choice but to use the designated route as determined by the taxi association. Then maxi cabs were introduced which shook the industry, maybe not significantly, but the impact was there. Fast forward to 2016 & now we have Uber, which puts the customer in the “driving seat”, where they control the route & don’t need to pay cash. Taxi owners are not happy with Uber because it has really changed the industry drastically. Others chose to adapt & join Uber, others decided to leave the industry & others are trying to fight for the ways of the past to prevail.

Entrepreneurs need to be able to spot the changes in their industries & ensure their businesses adapt, lest they run the risk of closing its doors.