Recession vs Depression

With the announcement each day of the latest bad news about the economy, it is only natural that many are beginning to wonder whether we are entering a depression.

I am not sure it makes a big difference what the economists want to call it. I get absolutely no comfort that some would emphatically suggest that we are not in a depression and that it is "only" a recession.

I am reminded of that very old sick "joke" about the difference between a recession and a depression. A recession is when your neighbor can't find a job. A depression is when you can't find a job.

As I travel the country serving my consulting clients, I am seeing a level of pain that I have not seen in my lifetime. And, my analysis of market factors for my clients has me convinced that this downturn will be long and deep, a belief I have stated here often since the inception of this blog last year.

Even the Fed, which is cautious about exacerbating the problem through negative talk, is now publicly reporting they expect this downturn to be a multi-year event.

Call it what you want. My bottom line is that I believe strongly that the sooner one repositions oneself to prosper in the downturn, the sooner one will experience prosperity.

Let the pundits debate whether it is a recession or a depression. Put your energy into crafting and then executing a plan for prospering in tough times.

Heck, it will be easy enough to go back to your good times plan when the good times eventually come.