We’ve all heard the phrase, “If the shoe fits…” meaning, if you’re accused of something (good or bad) and that deed fits your m.o. then it was probably you, because, well, the shoe fits.

In turnaround, the shoe rarely fits. I’ve either got a size 12 company with a size 8 shoe or a flat-bottomed foot with a big-arched shoe. Either way, the shoe doesn’t fit.

But in turnaround, we do what we can to make it fit.

We get creative with shoes. Perhaps we lop off some toes to make the shoe fit, or maybe we cut the end of the shoe off.

Whatever the case, it’s not the job of a turnaround professional to complain that what they’ve been given doesn’t fit right or work the way it should. If you like things to be neat when you arrive, don’t get into the turnaround business.

It’s our job to make the creative deals and think constructively about how to make things work that don’t appear to work. If you want to start thinking like a turnaround professional to get more working at your business than is already, remember that if the shoe doesn’t fit, you’ll have to make it fit.

Do your shoes fit?