I caught up with a founder who shared his recent lessons learned. The pandemic forced him to shift his in-person educational events to Zoom. The lack of personal interaction initially concerned him. He worried about his customers not being able to interact and build relationships. In the end, he didn’t have a choice, so he decided to make the best of it. Soon, he realized he had an unexpected chance to capture content. He recorded the Zoom sessions and is building a content library and supporting marketing materials. He will offer the content to future customers as well as those he has now.

His story reminded me why he’s an entrepreneur. His positive attitude helped him adapt to a bad situation. Because he sees his glass as half full, he recognized an amazing opportunity and took advantage of it. I loved his outlook and approach. In the end, he exceeded his pre-pandemic expectations.

Sometimes the best-laid plans go awry. It happens to all of us. You did everything you were supposed to, but it wasn’t meant to be. Some things are out of our control. But these hiccups don’t determine whether we ultimately succeed or fail. In my opinion, perspective and response do. How we respond to adversity is 100% within our control. Our response is usually a reflection of our perspective. If we believe the cloud we’re under has a silver lining, chances are we’ll find it.

Next time things don’t go as planned, don’t fret. Consider what you can do to make something good happen.