Need some Optimism?

These are gloomy days, allegedly. What with a global recession, and now more impending doom from swine flu, is there anything to look forward to? Will our capitalistic democracy crumble in the wind? Will recession carry on for years, decades?

Some days, it's easy to get swept up in the hysteria (a lot of those days start by getting on an underground train and picking up a copy of Metro). The press makes out that we are all doomed. Are we? Is this it? Is the end nigh?

Of course not. Actually, things are better than ever. All you need is the right perspective. Here's some things that will cheer you up:

1. We've probably now reached the bottom. It's unlikely to get any worse, even if it takes some time to recover. If you've survived thus far, then great! All you need to do is hang on a little further.
2. Companies like Woolworths did not go out of business because of the recession. It was an inviable business that lost its way a decade ago. Blaming a slowing economy is much easier than admitting that you lost the plot. Surprise surprise, hundreds of other inviable businesses followed suit.
3. Stop reading the news. There is nothing important that happens in the world that you won't find out about from your family and friends. Try to completely stop consuming any news at all for a week, and see how you feel.
4. Visit your industry's trade show. I've been to three since the start of the recession, and was overwhelmed with how upbeat and positive everyone was. People were buoyant, excited and doing business as usual. Actually, it was better than usual, people were thriving. Every day, you'll leave on a high, filled with optimism.
5. Re-invent yourself. Business models change over time, and you cannot do the same thing forever. If you've been scraping by for years, then you will be struggling like crazy now. How?
6. Use the internet to your advantage.

If you are a shop keeper, now must be a scary time. It's been hard to compete with the likes of Amazon, eBay and the hyper-markets (a french expression for their massive WalMart style shops - just like our larger Tesco's and Asda's). You can try and resist them, and hold fast - or you can embrace the change and join the digital evolution. If you've got the experience of running a shop, you've got an abundance of skills that are necessary to making an e-shop work (cash flow balancing, stock management, customer relationship management), and if you have specialist knowledge as well, you can build a niche brand that will reach a nationwide group of consumers.

Ben