Daily Inspiration: “You’ll never know when you’ve reached rock bottom – until you’re back on top looking down!”

“You’ll never know when you’ve reached rock bottom – until you’re back on top looking down!” – #Futurist Jim Carroll

I can’t decide if my quote today is about the stock market and economy, or is a recipe and pathway for personal growth.

So let’s make it about both!

Obviously, we are in new territory when it comes to our 11-year bull market – volatility reigns, fear is driving decisions, and uncertainty rules every agenda. The hardest thing is to know when we’ve reached the bottom of the downturn – when we had the big economic meltdown in October 2008, we didn’t really hit rock bottom until March 2009.

Much uncertainty is going to drive the global business agenda for quite some time – hence, the quote.

So what do you do if you don’t know if we are anywhere near the bottom of a business cycle? Focus on the future!

Coincidentally, March 2009 found me in Las Vegas with my largest ever audience from two global companies, speaking about the future and innovation – one group had 7,500 people in the room.

The CEO of each organization wanted me to help people understand that they needed to focus on the future, not the present, NOW.

Lesson? Don’t wait to hit the bottom before you start thinking about the top!

From a personal perspective?

It’s pretty certain that you’ll face quite a few career setbacks throughout your lifetime: layoffs, reorganizations, downsizing, and more. It’s how you roll with the punches and pick yourself up that will define your future.

And obviously, you’ll go through waves of personal turmoil and anguish. Life is a roller coaster ride that takes us from the peaks of exhilaration to the depths of despair, often without knowing what is coming after the next climb.

The key? Your ability to recover from the lows is what will define your opportunity to experience the highs!