Life gave us a wakeup call last week.

Trace and Rhonda Adkins’ house burned.  Something as small as one electrical outlet destroyed the memorabilia of a lifetime.   Everyone was safe, however, because the family had an emergency plan and had practiced it.

That same weekend, the Cranes were not so fortunate.  Returning from a week’s vacation at the beach, the family was near home when a driver swerved into their car.  The Crane car left the interstate, flipped several times, and hit a tree.  My friend, riding in the front passenger seat, was killed instantly.  Her husband and three teenage sons were injured but will physically recover.  The hole in her family, community, church, and business cannot be filled.

Calamities such as these come without warning.  So, preparation and practice are imperative.  Yet, of the viewers responding this week to WSMV’s survey about preparedness, only 15 percent had a plan for emergencies and had practiced it.

The personal lessons are many; however, what can you as a business owner learn?  How prepared are you for a business disruption—a fire, a tornado, a flood, the loss of a key employee, a technology malfunction, cyber theft . . . the list can go on and on.  What would you do?  What are you prepared to do?  Can your business (your livelihood) continue?

If you don’t have a business continuity plan, that project should be at the head of your list.  Analyses, solution design, implementation, testing, and revision need to occur before a crisis hits.

A business continuity plan is working out how to stay in business in the event of a disaster or emergency like the ones already mentioned.  However, planning should not be limited to just that. Any event that could cause the loss of business should be considered, including any item the business is dependent on, such as loss of materials and energy supplies, loss of critical infrastructure (a major piece of machinery or computing/network resource), loss from theft or vandalism, or loss of key personnel.

Once your plan has been formulated, your management team and frontline employees must practice so that their decisions and behavior come automatically when they are in the midst of turmoil and confusion.

Such preparation and practice will minimize your operational and security risks.  In other words, you might be able to stay in business—providing products and services to people who need them and providing a livelihood to your family and your employees’ families.

If you needed a wakeup call, events in the last two weeks provided it.  Take steps to give yourself peace of mind.  If not for yourself, prepare for all the families who depend on the stability of your business for their quality of life.

Life doesn’t give us a do-over.  All we have is NOW.

Arnelle Adcock is one of the two tall women who owns Clover Management Group in Brentwood. Contact her at aadcock@clovermg.com.