Thanksgiving 2009
Add comment November 26th, 2009
It’s early in the morning on Thanksgiving Day and I wanted to reprise my short list of what I am thankful for; it’s been the same for the last few years:
- Health
- Family
- Friends
- Opportunity
To be self-employed in a downturn is a wonderful opportunity: I don’t have to worry about getting laid off. And as long as I have health, family, and friends the formula for avoiding bad luck is simple:
“I never knew an early-rising, hard-working, prudent man, careful of his earnings, and strictly honest who complained of bad luck.” Henry Ward Beecher
We live in uncertain times. We find ourselves in the midst of recession and increasingly rapid technology transitions. I continued to be guided by two rules of thumb for navigating turbulent situations:
- “It may looks like a crisis but it’s only the end of an illusion.” Gerald Weinberg in Secrets of Consulting
- “Innovation requires us to systematically identify changes that have already occurred but whose full effects have not yet been felt, and then to look at them as opportunities. It also requires existing companies to abandon rather than defend yesterday.” Peter Drucker in Innovation and Entrepreneurship