Months ago I looked around me at what was going on in the economy and stock market and it literally gave me tightness in my chest. It was hard for me to concentrate on work, or much of anything. Things that I had read about and worried about were coming to life and the pace of news was nauseating. It’s not that way anymore. Which is actually kind of scary in its own way. The Dow broke 7000 today in what was widely considered a critical support level. Where do we go from here? Likely no where good. But I barely batted an eye. Why? I’ve either gotten used to it, or I’ve made peace with it. This is our new reality. We should move forward. Always forward.

It’s always the same. The people who I watch in life, who I’ve read about, and who I admire, are always the same. Watch how they handle setbacks and misfortune. Sure they might hiccup. But only for a minute. They focus intently on what’s right in front of them. They see what they can repair. What they can improve. Where they can go. They keep moving forward. There are certain people who when you look back at their story, every one of their setbacks ended up being a launching pad for something better. Are they blessed? A coincidence? It’s their attitude. Dr. Liza Siegel, the psychologist from The Apprentice, (Yes, we had an on-site psychologist and let me assure you that we all made full use.) drove this home for me. She stressed how across all the people she came across in her life– whether it was the people who made it through the insane casting process to make it on The Apprentice or whatever, it was this resiliency that was just indefatigable.

So, now, as we look at the insanity around us, remember that it’s always the same. Be that person. If you’ve lost your job (or a friend of yours has, remind them) be that person. The one who takes a second to take accounts, and then wakes up earlier the next morning to move forward. Who creates their next opportunity. Whatever it is, savings vanishing, job losses, home price depreciation, etc — these are all detours. It’s always the same. Those who believe in themselves and their ability– those who believe in hard work and earning every inch of what they get– nothing has changed. There are still opportunities. We just have to get back to work. Oh, and as negative as I’ve been on all of this, I do, truly, believe that when we all get back to work, we’ll be on our way to getting out of this hellish hole. Until then we can each only do our part.