Date: Wednesday, 18 April 2012

When I was younger, things were so much easier. I started my first business, Insomnia, when I was just 25 years old. I didn't have a care in the world and I had way more confidence in my capabilities than what perhaps was a reality. I truly believed that I could do anything, go anywhere and achieve what others may think is unachievable.

As you ride the wave of being an entrepreneur, one thing sticks out. No matter how enthusiastic and positive you are, there is a wave of excitement that at times diminishes. That does not mean that you give up or even want to give up - but it does mean that life is not all a rosy 100% of the time.

After chatting to one of the top Hedge Fund Managers in Australia last week about the state of the economy and where it is heading... I got thinking – is my business recession proof?

 The European market isn’t getting any better and in fact, it is expected to get a lot worse. Greece is battered by recession, debt and now a snow storm and the recession in the Eurozone is one of the deepest recessions on record.

 The US – well that’s another story. But debt levels are higher now than they were in the 1920’s recession. Much higher. No wonder people are stopping their shopping sprees and thinking twice before buying a new set of golf clubs or another pair of Jimmy Choos.

As small business owners, we have a lot to think about. If you are anything like me, I think about what I should do and often only get to do a few things off my list because there is always something else that pops up. Thinking about your business and how equipped it is to survive a further downturn is not only smart, but critical if you want to survive- yet while many of us think about these things, how many of us actually do something about it?

 While over-hyped valuations are still going crazy in the market similar to the dot com boom (Instagram!!), the property and the mining booms – we all know that what goes up must come down. But as small business owners we cannot afford to go down with the economy.

 Here are some things all small business owners should look at: