A point of view on the economic recovery

In June I posed a question to my groups on Linkedin "The economic recovery is supposed to be two quarters in - does it feel that way to you?"  Some of my groups are national and some are local to where I live.  It was interesting to hear the various reactions to this question.  And obviously even Ben Bernanke is confused.  Most responders felt the economy will remain flat for several months.  My college alumni group has some very thoughtful answers on how to solve the problem.

But what I found most helpful was that several seasoned executives took the time to remind us that things will and do get better.  Comments like: "The United States has been in this predicament before and we have always come out of it stronger and better than ever."  "Make your own economy by changing what has failed you previously."  "Say to the world it doesn't matter what the economy is doing as this is a great time to build stronger relationships with existing clients and define new business opportunities."  And many people suggested disengaging from the negative, bad news hailstorm of the main stream media.  "They create an ongoing negative perception that doesn't reflect the current economic conditions."

So my take on what I heard is that 2010 is still going to be a bumpy ride but there are pockets of opportunity - they may not be where you or your company have traditonallly played so being nimble will be more critical than ever to success.