In the early eighties we had our first experience with a recession and our work with Harvester came to a standstill, which put us in a dire situation. We had just bought a building and were renovating it so we could have space to expand. We had to stop paying ourselves, layoff staff, and hit the pavement to rebuild our client base. Our survival instinct kept us going. We felt we had built a great company, and we were not about to give up. At the time we had bank financing on the renovation of the building. As the recession deepened, our banker wanted us to sell out. I believe he did not have faith that a creative services company owned by a woman could survive.
The key to doing well is being flexible and knowing that good and bad times come and go. When times are good you still have to be conservative because they won’t last forever and when times are bad you have to persevere and believe you can get through it. The tough periods come and go, and you have to be patient, because losing sleep and getting angry will do no good at all. Think logically and you can get through anything. You need to look at each day as a special gift because life is very short.
Bio: Diane MacWilliams won the 2001 Woman Business Owner of the Year award as presented by the National Association of Women Business Owners, and as well, has been inducted into the Chicago Area Entrepreneurial Hall of Fame. Provided by: www.survivingadversity.com
