If you're going to give up

The next twelve months or so are probably going to be filled with doom and gloom. Whether or not you are hard hit by the financial downturn, you will be hit hard by the anxiety in the air. Optimism will be in short supply.

It is a good time to make a decision. Crudely put, it goes something like: dig in or give up. Either decide that you have the gumption to make something good out of a tough time, or quit now. If you are going to give up at some point during this downturn, there is no sense in waiting. Why not forgo the roller coaster of hope and doubt and simply get to the end that much faster?

Or. . . if you are not prepared to give up, why not decide to survive? Why not incorporate - as the hypnotists say - the negative vibes and the fear and the general angst? Notice it and acknowledge it as a predictable consequence of being in business and move through it as a swimmer moves through an icy patch of water or a climber moves up a piece of raw cliff? Hardship is difficult, but lots of people choose hardship when it is part of a path they are eager to travel.

Decide now what story you will live in while the rest of the world moves through one of those darkly ironic modern stories of hope gone wrong. Tell yourself where the hardship fits into your (better) story of challenge and pioneering spirit and ultimate success. If you are going to endure the aggravation, you might as well win in the end.

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