The Worst-Case Scenario Business Survival Guide


Worst Case Scnario Business Survival GuideSometimes I think that today’s publishers are running a contest on who could come up with the longest sub-title to a business book.

If they were, “The Worst-Case Scenario Business Survival Guide: How to Survive the Recession, Handle Lay-offs, Raise Emergency Cash, Thwart an Employee Coup, and Avoid Other Potential Disasters” would win.

This was a book that I picked up as a must-read for 2009. One of my criteria for must-read books was that it could serve as a quick reference guide when you came across a problem you weren’t sure how to solve. And this book fits that description perfectly.

What I Expected and What I Got

I have to admit that I wasn’t sure if the book would be tongue-in-cheek and funny — or if it would be serious. The Worst Case Survival Guide is serious. I love that the chapters are broken out by the most basic business functions:

  • Financial Emergencies
  • HR Emergencies
  • Productivity Emergencies
  • Sales and Marketing Emergencies
  • Executive Emergencies

Within each of these chapters are a series of “How-to” recipes for success. Here is a smattering from across all the chapters:

  • How to Survive When You Can’t Make Payroll
  • How to Fire Someone
  • How to Fend Off “Death by Meeting”
  • How to Identify a Nightmare Customer
  • How to Apologize to Anyone
  • How to Avoid Getting a Divorce

This is exactly what I had expected and would want from a “survival guide.” Of course, being a marketing professional, I went straight to the sales and marketing chapter to see what their recommendations were. I found them to be solid and true – not necessarily the most creative or best solution for every organization. But that’s not what the book is called. It’s a SURVIVAL GUIDE. By definition, it’s about doing the best you can when your brain isn’t fully functional and emotions are running high. And for that purpose, this book is outstanding.

Don’t Forget the Appendix

There is one other extremely helpful section to the book; the Appendix. It’s filled with actual speeches and scripts that you can use when you can’t begin to think of what to say:

  • The “You’re Fired” Speech
  • The Layoff Speech
  • Ten Great “Tough Time” Pep Talks
  • Quick Cash Generation Tactics

There are more, but I have more to tell and not much space.

About the Authors and the Experts

As you’d imagine, this book couldn’t have come together or been much good if it were only done by one person. David Borgenicht and Mark Joyner are two New York Times Bestselling Authors and you can see why. The prose is straight and to-the-point. These authors recognized that this book would be picked up in an extremely emotional and stressed-out frame of mind and wrote exactly to that. This is what I appreciate most about the book. There is absolutely zero fluff in here.

Twenty-Seven experts contributed to this book! Some of whom you’d recognize like Chris Brogan and Joe Vitali and many more CEOs, Psychologists, Lawyers and other business professionals contribute their wealth of experience in this short book. There is over a million dollars worth of expert experience and how-to in this book.

Who Should Buy This Book

If you are a business owner with employees, this is an absolute, no brainer. The Worst Case Scenario Business Survival Guide should be in every business person’s briefcase or computer case because unpleasant circumstances pop up when you least expect them. We all know that when emotions are running high it’s hard to think and this book will keep you on track and safe until you get your bearings.

Pick this one up at your favorite bookseller — because when business gets tough, the tough get “The Worst-Case Scenario Business Survival Guide.”

4 Comments ▼

Ivana Taylor Ivana Taylor is the Book Editor for Small Business Trends. She is responsible for directing the site’s book review program and manages the team of professional book reviewers. She also spearheads the annual Small Business Book Awards. Ivana publishes DIYMarketers, where she shares daily do-it-yourself marketing tips, and is co-author of "Excel for Marketing Managers."

4 Reactions
  1. It’s vital to prepare for the worst case scenario in any kind of Business.
    The Worst-Case Scenario Business Survival Guide provides you the answers you need when disaster strikes-and what you must know to avoid the next one. Every new and existing company should always have a business plan.
    They are the roadmap to future business success.

  2. Ivana,

    Could you explain was “Death by Meeting” is?

  3. @Martin Lindeskog – Hi Martin. “Death by Meeting” often refers to our corporate tendency to have meaningless meetings that include too many people, last entirely too long, and accomplish too little. Hence the phrase “Death by Meeting” 🙂