What makes a company survive when everything seems to crumble? This is a question that many entrepreneurs, especially those of small and medium size, are faced with difficulties that, at different times, inevitably arise. Caixa squeezes, customers delay payments, sales do not respond as planned, inventory stuck, partners differ on investments. Sometimes the problem is not only in the market, but in internal decisions that accumulate and press the health of the operation.
In the business universe, resilience is an asset as essential as it is invisible. It does not appear in the accounting balance, but it may be the factor that differentiates business that thrives from those that are on the way. “Resilience is not about resisting without changing, but about adapting to maintaining essence,” wrote Nassim Nicholas Taleb in Antifragile, a work that became a reference when we talk about companies capable of growing precisely from adversity.
But how does this resilience manifest itself in practice?
A recent example is Flow, a digital producer that has gained notoriety through podcasts and live broadcasts. The company lived a critical moment after one of the partners, in a controversial statement, relativizing Nazism during an interview. The impact was immediate: brands moved away, the company’s credibility was in check and the business had to reinvent itself to survive.
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The theme was resumed in the zero podcast to the top, from InfomoneyThe lesson is clear: it was not a problem of cash flow or default, but reputation – one of the most difficult assets to rebuild. Flow had to make quick decisions, review its governance, separate the image from the individual image of members, and, above all, reposition itself before the audience and sponsors.
This case illustrates well how the risks that surround a company go far beyond financial spreadsheets. They cross human capital, communication, values and even the behavior of leaders. It is a reminder that having a 360º look at the business is not luxury, it is a need.
At the same time, we cannot set aside traditional financial risks. Delays in receiving customers, increased default and the weight of interest in third party capital are factors that press liquidity and require the cash discipline entrepreneur. How to balance growth investments with the need to preserve liquidity? What is the healthy limit of indebtedness? Is it worth looking for new partners or capital partners?
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These are questions that have no unique answer, but require consistent financial management and partnership with institutions that offer more than credit. Banks that act as strategic allies, giving entrepreneur independence to make decisions, may be the difference between being able to cross a crisis or succumb to it. After all, when the cashier tightens, the reaction time is short and reinvention opportunities may depend on the speed
Whether in the Flow episode, or in the daily life of a small company that struggles to balance inventory and sales, the message is the same: The entrepreneur needs to be prepared for the unpredictable. This is not about having all the answers, but of cultivating a mindset that combines discipline, flexibility and reading capacity of the scenario.
Resilience, in this sense, is not just emotional – it translates into processes, governance, financial strategy and ability to mobilize people around a purpose. Companies that cross strengthened crises often come out of the other side more aware of their role, more attentive to risk signs and often more innovative.
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And here is the reflection: how is the resilience of your business? Are you clear about the risks that most threaten your business today? Is the cashier prepared for an unexpected drop in recipes? Are partners aligned with priorities? Would your brand be able to resist a reputation shake?
History shows that crises are inevitable, but collapses not. The difference is how the company prepares, responds and learns. For entrepreneurs who still see resilience as something “abstract”, it may be time to see it as an asset as vital as the capital that circulates in the bank account.
