The bright side of life

Human beings are natural optimists and they react to people who don’t fear and offer solutions.

Recession doesn’t mean retract.

In fact this is the time to harness all that negative spin and energy and actually stand up and articulate yourself very clearly in a positive manner. That will help you stand out and hopefully be at the front of the next wave of rising fortunes.

We know what a recession does and feels like. Acknowledge that and let’s move on in positivity because that can also be its own self-fulfilling prophecy.

When people come out of their caves you want to be there. You want to be the one they see and you want to have some workable answers.

Have you noticed how fast marketing and advertising initiatives have been to respond to the new language of the downturn?

They’ve certainly figured out which consumer hot buttons to push. An increasing number of ads on TV, radio and in print are articulating a link to bad times and in turn suggesting that they and their products are your solution.

At the same time this amplifies and manifests a herd mentality and might well make people actually retreat into their homes and businesses, away from public spending and profile. Instead we must continue to nurture individuality and big ideas out of the box.

The world is moving so fast, that we seem to continually move in extremes. TV shows are almost turning into reality TV because they are being produced close enough to their airing times, we’re seeing all manner of up-to-the-minute references nightly.

All this is saturating our world and that makes it too easy to focus on the negative. “Everyone’s doing it,” you cry, “so I’ll be there with them.”

Think about it – why is the well-worn Aussie question “how are ya?” usually answered as “not too bad”. Why is 8% unemployment the figure always bandied about when that means there’s 92% employment?

Perhaps our psyche needs an overhaul as a way to see the bright side of life.