Chet Holmes: Doing Business during Crisis Brings Out Excellence Chet Holmes is the kind of business leader who can demonstrate proficiency and business acumen in all market conditions: when business flourished, he prospered; when business was stagnant, he prospered still. Behind this almost unbelievable business growth lies one core principle: working smartly. While most business people would simply shrug their shoulders, lay off employees by the hundreds and say there are bad times for business, Chet Holmes’ company in association with Tony Robbins, Business Breakthroughs International, kept growing and hiring people. And Chet Holmes’ business training courses kept selling like bread. Unfortunately, not all of the business people who went through the training applied it correctly – hence the continuous pitfall of the business environment of 2009-2010. Doing business in times of crisis is a tough challenge, but with unexpected side benefits for the sharp-eyed entrepreneurs: a huge amount of highly qualified workforce with lower salary expectations, bigger negotiation opportunities with providers and suppliers, and a great opportunity to offer top quality at lower costs than usual. Chet Holmes proposed the model of virtual business even well before the economic crisis. After all, Business Breakthroughs International is a 100% virtual company, and has been so since its inception. Now, more and more businesses decide to go virtual, but not because they want to be innovative, but because high maintenance costs for their headquarters nearly ran them out of business. Business excellence is taking a daring decision when it has the opportunity to bring you maximum benefits, not when it is the last choice for survival. What Chet Holmes teaches is to be a top dog in any situation. Applying discipline, time management, getting only the best employees are just some of the qualities of a true leader. But they are essential. And for companies who take their business virtual, these qualities are crucial, if you want to maintain the same consistent services and present the same professional image to the clients. Business in times of crisis is not an utter impossibility, it is a challenge, and Chet Holmes has proven that business can prosper in such times. If nothing else, the difficulty must bring out excellence in every entrepreneur, the pride for running a business combined with the skills to keep it alive and take it to the next level.