*Serious discussion klaxon*

After many detailed conversations with colleagues, friends and, of course, Ziggy the Office Wonder Dog, we’ve been thinking of ways that we can help businesses and individuals out there through the current unpleasantness. And of course, by helping others, we can cheer ourselves up and have some sense of focus too.

This will be a work in progress over the next few weeks, but the idea is for short term resilience (it’s terrible, but it’s not that terrible folks) and in the longer term when life will assuredly go on in all its colour and variety, having something out there that we can collectively look forward to.

The first things I want to put out here for discussion are:

• Support right now, for you as a person and, if possible, for your business – I’m 56, my business has been through 9/11, Lehman Brothers, the Euro Crisis and other events (me being off sick for a month in an ICU for instance) too tedious to enumerate. I know that being stuck at home feeling isolated and helpless when you want to be in control is bloody awful. I can’t come and meet everyone in person, but I want you to set up a free video call on Skype, Gmail, WhatsApp or the medium of your choice, call me, drop me an email or just Skype at random. I don’t want anyone out there at all to feel alone or lost. There’s no psychology, motivational cobblers or payment, just call.

• This will get a bit worse before it gets better. For many of us, that means the kids will be at home for the next month and that we’ll be worried about our mums and dads. For all us small business CEOs out there, there is no point in getting through this and then having a stress-induced heart attack next year. So back to support again, if you are a CEO, and I know a great many of you, one place you don’t have to be tough is on a call with me. We are working with a CA and other professionals to put together some ideas and advice that you may find useful, but there’s no way I’m going to charge anyone for anything on that score. Big tough CEOs then, call me, and we’ll put the world to rights any time you like. Having a cry in the comfort of your own office is just fine.

• Soon, the summer will come, and this will pass. I’d like to propose that we all collectively work to get at least one positive thing out of this be it new friendships, happiness, an appreciation for our families – whatever. I’m going to propose that we arrange some events between us (some of you are professional event organisers) later this year that we can all look forward to. Be it a night at the pub in Callander for everyone who can make it here and doesn’t mind sleeping on the couch or a party for families near where you live that you can invite people to that you’d like to meet in real life and not just on social media.

I’m around for the foreseeable, and I’ll try to remember to divert my landline to my mobile when I go out!