Distant Thunder

Okay, the cat’s out of the bag. Everyone is talking about a recession. Maybe we’re in one, maybe we’re not, but anyone who’s managing a budget these days is making plans for the worse.

Kind of like the sound of distant thunder. It may come your way and rain like crazy, or it may miss you completely. Regardless, you need to be careful.

How does this translate to your career?

Just about everything will be different and you need to make a mental mind shift to survive. Do it right and you may even thrive.

No Budget is Safe

You may have a project you’re working on that’s been budgeted for quite some time. Don’t be surprised if the budget gets cut.

I remember in 2002 we were facing a similar economic downturn. My group was planning a big product launch at a major trade show. The show began on a Saturday and on Friday afternoon I was told that all marketing event budgets had been cut and we would be pulling out of the show.

The problem was it would cost more money to pull out than to stay. Every expenditure had already been made; no credits or refunds were possible, and people were already at the show. In fact, we’d have to pay penalties to fly them home early.

I went berserk and started calling everyone I could to reverse this stupid idea. I was an Executive Vice President at the time so I had access to everyone and people generally listened to me.

Sending a Message

Guess what, even though it cost the company more money to pull out of the show at the last minute than to go through with the exhibition – we still pulled out!

The logic was to “send a message” to everyone in the company that it was time to cut back all discretionary spending.

So my first tip to everyone is to start thinking about ways to cut back. What was a bold idea last year is now a stupid idea that “we can’t afford.” Make a mind shift and try to come up with ideas for saving money.

You could become a star in the new business environment.

Next Post – Become a Cost Cutting Crusader