Listen Carefully…Opportunity is Knocking.

Try for a minute to drown out the screams from Wall Street and shrill sound of government rescue sirens. Shhh…hear that? Opportunity is knocking. Amid the gloom, doom and economic pessimism these days, it’s easy to lose sight of the fact that recessions actually create opportunities for smart small and mid-size businesses to grow! That’s not a misprint. Grow and thrive. Really!

While the general feeling being passed down from the top is that huge, behemoth businesses are failing and bleeding at unprecedented rates and the sky is falling, the fact is life will go on. And because of this simple fact, consumers will continue to consume both products and services and businesses will continue to provide them. Oh sure, we’ll cut back here and there and well watch our pennies and some businesses will necessarily close the doors but far more will adapt and survive.

Smart businesses will even thrive and grow. They will seize the opportunity presented by weakened and disheartened competition and capitalize on the customers who are being abandoned by the dying giants. They’ll scoop up some fantastic new talent from the deep pool being created by big business layoffs. They’ll continue to spend marketing dollars wisely positioning their brands while their competition freezes and slashes budgets. Why? Because they understand that a marketing dollar spent in a down economy is far more powerful than those spent in a boom. And if they weather the storm appropriately the long run payoff will be big.

And these savvy and focused companies will quietly grow and thrive even while the stock market ebbs and flows and while the government scrambles to get dollar number one of the stimulus plan onto the street. They will remain calm amid the panic of the masses and will continue to focus on the goods and services that provide employment and sustenance for over half of the US population. And when the recession ends (as it will in 11-13 months if history is any indication of the future), we will have a new generation of business leaders and “ones to watch”. Granted, small businesses probably won’t be enjoying a boost from the Feds this go round and yes it’s a bit of a punch in the gut. But it’s not a fatal blow.

How can I be so sure? History. It’s happened this way time and time again. It’s pure and simple capitalism. As entrepreneurs, it’s in our blood. As Americans, it’s in our mettle. Now, turn off the news and answer the door.

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