Contributed by Madhavan Sivashankar, chief executive officer and founder, Gulf International Finance Limited. Sivashankar has been a member of EO UAE since October 2020. 

“Life’s not about how hard of a hit you can give. It’s about how many you can take, and still keep moving forward.” ― Sylvester Stallone, Rocky Balboa

When my business plans took a significant turn in March 2020, owing to lockdowns implemented to prevent the spread of Covid 19, my initial feeling was remorse. Time, they say, heals and for entrepreneurs like us, it make us think and then act!

When I looked up the word “resilience,” I found that I had the definition wrong. Its meaning is the capacity to recover quickly from difficulties. I always felt that it meant insulating oneself from problems. A fallacy.

I own and run a regulated financial services firm based in the UAE’s Dubai International Financial Centre, a high-cost jurisdiction even by global standards. Every day without revenue is a strain. I often regard financial services as the infantry of an army. We get the glory in good times but face the brunt in volatile times. Covid has been no different.