Many of the business magazines I read indicate that the world of business is not just attempting to recover from a recession, but we are all discovering that the rules of our economy have changed. We are all looking at expenditures of our hard-earned dollars more closely. This is causing the retail industry to re-invent itself. The tourism/travel industry is marketing more aggressively than ever in its history to fill empty hotel rooms and restaurant seats. The housing industry is rebounding one day and slipping backward the next. I notice that three new homes are being built in our neighborhood. Two years ago, the property owner expected these to be 4500+ square feet. It appears a thousand square feet have been shaved from the builder’s blueprints. These are certainly times of uncertainty. 

We would like to have seen the “good times” keep rolling along. Instead, we are all challenged to re-invent life as we know it. As we do, two things happen. On the conservative side of the ledger, we discover that what’s really important in life isn’t about the money. On the more progressive side of things, we recognize that we had perhaps grown too comfortable and need to create whatever’s next to keep the world turning. The need to innovate is the battle cry. Once upon a time, we had a single phone hanging on the kitchen wall; now every member of the family carries a cell phone. Once upon a time, we could only play tunes on a Sony Walkman; then Steve Jobs and his team created the iPod and an entire iPod accessories industry. Once upon a time, our fingers did the walking through the Yellow Pages and now we Google. 

So, what’s the message? For now, be happy with what you’ve got while you simultaneously become a part of inventing whatever’s next. The good thing about the good ole days is that they were good to most of us. The good thing about the future is that it will bring breakthroughs that are just now being dreamt of and which will astonish us all as we Americans once again demonstrate our resiliency and ingenuity. After all, the most difficult times often bring out the best in us—the best of our compassionate natures and of our creative minds.

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