Thriving In the New Economy
What is the Recession Telling Us?
There is good news in the offing: economic recovery is a foregone conclusion. If there is anything we know about the swing of a pendulum, it is that it always goes both ways. I believe the cure for our current recession is germinating within the recession itself. What do I mean by this? The recession is self limiting; it will bring about its own demise. Why? Because it forces the paradigm shift that will provide the cure.
People all over America are being forced to reassess some of their traditional notions about how they are to ensure their own financial security and take care of their families, notions that roughly fall into three categories — the job, the profession and the entrepreneur. It may be time to re-examine the relative values of each.
Let’s take an inventory. Our sources of income generally fall into one of these three categories. Two of our traditional concepts are to get a job and work for someone else, or to get an education and become a professional, perhaps working for someone else or for yourself with your own private practice, as a doctor or an attorney, for example. The fundamental premise of both of these models is also their greatest weakness. In both cases, you’re exchanging time and expertise for money, so if you are not working, you are not getting paid. This is a double edged sword. In a booming economy, you can create a nice lifestyle, but you may run yourself ragged in the process, because you are exchanging a lot of time, for a lot of money. On the other hand, when things slow down you take a serious hit in the pocketbook. You have probably noticed white collar professionals are as nervous as the blue collar workers and their losses may be many times greater.
The third source of income is owning your own business. The great challenges that come with owning your own business are the start-up costs, the high failure rates, and if you’re successful, sooner or later you are going to run out of time or talent, and you are going to have to employ others to help you grow the enterprise. You simply cannot create wealth without leveraging yourself through others.
There is a fourth alternative…an alternative that should be obvious and yet is so often overlooked. Much has been debated by the financial consultants, self-help gurus, business professors and real world marketers, but one thing that we all seem to agree on is the value of diversification…multiple streams of income. Why limit your financial future to one of the above three sources of income when you can capitalize on more. Is this the message this recession is whispering in our ear? Perhaps we should be paying closer attention.
Let’s continue the inventory. The 40-hour job rarely occupies less than 50, professionals are spending 60 and business owners will work anywhere from 60-80 hours per week. Our most commonly uttered phrase has become, “I’m too busy.” How could one squeeze two of these models into one life? Is it possible to launch a business of your own…with a part-time effort? Yes.
Direct Marketing has begun its boom. Direct marketing may take several forms: one-on-one, face-to-face marketing, internet, direct sales, multi-level or network marketing and more. Currently, it is estimated that 13 million Americans are participating in this $32 billion national industry. It provides the opportunity to create wealth without the risk of traditional business.
Paul Zane Pilzer, noted economist and author, describes the coming decades as the “age of the entrepreneur” and predicts that the next 10 million millionaires will emerge from direct selling, technology, home-based business, product distribution, or an emerging trillion-dollar industry like wellness. Pilzer is recognizing the migration of millions of Americans from the employee ranks to the ranks of the small, home business owner, the direct seller, the network marketer.
Donald Trump has noted, “It’s time for all of us to diversify and take back the American dream,” adding that “you have to be smart and plan for your future; you can’t expect your job or the government to create your wealth.”
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