Ok, so we are dealing with an economic slow down. It has happened before, and it will happen again. Instead of whining about it, or hiding under your desk now is the time to act! I found a post on Inc.com written a few months ago, with some interesting tips on how to start a business as the economy is slowing down.
The author suggested:
ON HIRING
If a local company has layoffs, call its HR department. You may be able to work with the company or with its outplacement agency to identify seasoned workers who would be interested in joining your start-up or working for you on a contract basis.
Bootstraping
Barter. Existing businesses will be looking for ways to put their excess capacity to use and may be willing to work with you. Online bartering exchanges, such as BizXchange (bizx.com), have listings for services like IT help and logo design.
One final thought. I was having coffee with a friend who owns a retail shop. It is a family business, and at 50 Bob has been around the business for most of his life. He said : The economy cycles up and down. It is naive to think business will always be UP, UP, UP. if you can’t handle the down cycles, you shouldn’t be in business!