An economic downturn is a great time to buy, expand, and build if you have the reserves to do so. But if you don’t here’s what I suggest:
- Throw yourself into whatever you’ve already got going. If you had money you could hire cheap labor to help with this, but if you don’t then you want to be as ahead as possible when things start to turn around.
- Start some new projects. If you have an idea you’ve been sitting on, put in some late nights and get it going. A bad economy will force you into a shoestring budget which is a good thing for new projects.
- Unemployed? Business slow? There’s tons of free marketing available (particularly on the internet), but it takes time to develop. Get the social networking bug and get your name out there, or join some local small business groups. The most stringent investment for most of them is the time commitment.
- Do not: get depressed, stop looking for work, give up on your ideas, accept defeat. It’s OK to put things on hold to make ends meet, but don’t let the economy dictate your direction.