PROFITING IN UNCERTAIN TIMES.

• Author: Bustin, Greg

'You can't jump half a ditch.' The challenges of uncertain times cry out for bold decision-making and strong leadership, coupled with clarity, confidence and commitment.

Are your business plans as ambitious as they were 12 months ago? Or have you cut back as you make decisions for an uncertain economy? As leaders confront issues that will reshape their business in 2002 and beyond, some are decidedly playing not to lose. Others are embracing change as an opportunity to build momentum and enter next year stronger than ever. What about your plans? Should you keep charging, or pull in your horns?

Inaction -- deciding to do nothing -- is often the worst decision of all. "Routine is the enemy of creative thinking," wrote the chairman emeritus of Neiman-Marcus in The Viewpoints of Stanley Marcus. "Creativity, in its best sense, relates to doing something in a new way. It may even be reclaiming something old and doing it anew from a fresh vantage point. It may be a bold jump into an uncharted path that reveals no obvious ending."

Marcus' words sound as relevant today as in 1992. He wrote, "Our current economic recession calls for solutions that are bold and innovative. It hungers for those who are prepared to look foolish as they propose new ideas and concepts." Put another way: thinking creatively is where success takes root.

Facing the Challenges

What does it take to face the challenges of an uncertain market? There are many proven strategies for jumpstarting mature businesses, capitalizing on market downturns and turning what may at first appear to be an imminent disaster into an unqualified success. The common denominator among winning companies is the willingness of leaders to pursue truth and, oftentimes, to risk looking foolish for challenging conventional wisdom. Possibility Thinking, is a process of answering a deceptively simple question in specific, concrete terms. Here's one: "If anything were possible, and there were no constraints, what would you want to celebrate one year from today?"

However you answer, your ability to meet those goals in uncertain times lies in these four simple truths:

1. You can't save your way to prosperity.

2. Value is in the eye of the beholder.

3. You can't jump half a ditch.

4. Activity without results is meaningless.

1. You can't save your way to prosperity.

   While continued sales declines often necessitate cutting expenses and prices, the real question to ask is: "What investments must we fund to enhance our...