In 2024, half of the world population is voting—or has already voted—in national elections. By year’s end, which leaders and policies will ultimately emerge victorious? And what lies ahead for regulations, supply chains and the overall economic landscape? Will the U.S. continue its soft landing trajectory?
Now, that’s not to say that any events or circumstances beyond your immediate control don’t matter or that it’s never worth trying to influence the wider world around you. Rather, the takeaway I see is this: If you’re a business leader doing your best to navigate through the headwinds, overly focusing on—and letting yourself be dictated by—outcomes and forces beyond your control will ultimately be profoundly counterproductive.
Meanwhile, the conscious decision to home in on what you do have control over and to prioritize resilience regardless of outside forces will breed success. And for businesses that heavily rely on their supply chains, this is where on-time payments and working capital play a role.
Acknowledging uncertainty about the future—and accepting what you don’t have control over—isn’t a sign of surrender but rather an embracement of truth and agency. After all, instead of pretending you have all the answers and hinging your success onand then there’s taking action to be effective—which, in my view, is the smarter and wiser goal for businesses and business leaders.