Even When Financial Giants Topple You Can Survive The Financial Crisis

While universally known financial giants continue to smash on the deck with resounding thumps, the financial world reels in mayhem. Scenes of perplexity and lack of self-confidence not seen since the Great Depression in the early 1930’s, nightly fill our television screens. This is not the point in time to panic and let your emotions to take over control.

So What are the Real Facts?

· The giants of the finance world that have been brought to their knees, through over-borrowing and being unable to pay it back. They might be weeping in their caviar, but when 18 billion becomes just only 3 billion, who is counting, except the filthy rich?

· Many 'average' business owners are cringing under their bed covers quivering in fear.

The present circumstances have been likened to economic Darwinism, where it is the survival of the fittest. You can either let yourself drown in doom and gloom, or think survival. You have a choice.

The major key to survival is how you manage your money. Okay, that sounds like the same old stuff, but in this new regime you need to rethink everything. You can survive the financial crisis, but it may be necessary to make a few changes along the way.

· First and foremost, Normal 0 MicrosoftInternetExplorer4 <!-- /* Style Definitions */ p.MsoNormal, li.MsoNormal, div.MsoNormal {mso-style-parent:""; margin:0cm; margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-pagination:widow-orphan; font-size:12.0pt; font-family:"Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family:"Times New Roman";} @page Section1 {size:612.0pt 792.0pt; margin:72.0pt 90.0pt 72.0pt 90.0pt; mso-header-margin:36.0pt; mso-footer-margin:36.0pt; mso-paper-source:0;} div.Section1 {page:Section1;} --> /* Style Definitions */ table.MsoNormalTable {mso-style-name:"Table Normal"; mso-tstyle-rowband-size:0; mso-tstyle-colband-size:0; mso-style-noshow:yes; mso-style-parent:""; mso-padding-alt:0cm 5.4pt 0cm 5.4pt; mso-para-margin:0cm; mso-para-margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-pagination:widow-orphan; font-size:10.0pt; font-family:"Times New Roman";} do not panic. Don't react to the situation and don't let your emotions rule you. Work this one from the head, not the heart.

· Secondly, you need to urgently assess the universal situation for yourself, not simply accepting everything the media hype is pushing at you. They will report the stories the way that sells copy. Remember they are the experts in Bad News. Do your own research.

· Globally we have become a consumer society on a grand scale, so take a long hard, unbiased look at your personal circumstances and re-evaluate coldly and calculatingly. Cut down on expenses wherever you can. Streamline where you can for more efficiency and less wastage. Spend money wisely and save it wherever you can.

It is time to break the wants list away from the needs lists. Don't give up on your dreams, but they are something you have to work into.

Every day you are inundated with a thousand and one different methods to spend your hard earned cash as quickly as possible, particularly if it involves anything to do with credit – where only the banks win! It’s time to realize that credit is a product the same as any other form of goods or services. It is constantly being sold to you.

Yes, in many areas people are losing jobs, but that can happen in any economical state. Be prepared to diversify. So what if you have done the same job for the last hundred years? You have other talents, some you are not even aware of. Adjustment is the real key to your survival. Search for new areas you could break into. Seek out what areas are still forging ahead.

When reporting from the World Knowledge Forum in Seoul, South Korea, marketing professor, Jean-Claude Larréché said "It's not the creative entrepreneurs but the large companies that are being challenged. Creative companies will survive in any condition".

"An enormous amount of opportunities", said Sir Richard Branson, "Will begin to emerge as a result of the current world economic down turn, but companies need to be nimble in order to move quickly and decisively to realize these opportunities".

This is not the time to creep away in fear, or try burying your head in the sand and expect it to all go away. This is a time to take optimistic action. Find out what your options are, plan carefully and step forward boldly. When things get tough, the tough get going.