Just as with the baby boomers in the 1980s and the baby boomers and generation Xers in the late 1990s the millenials were starting to hop from job to job chasing the dollars instead of the work they excelled at or their passions. The downturn has caused a battering down of the hatches and a return to more reasonable turn over rates among the millenials just as generation x begins to take the reigns of executive leadership from retiring baby boomers. This can be nothing but healthy in the long term.

Pain breads change, and the bankruptices, consolidations, and removal of over capacity from the marketplace can do nothing but aide our economy in the long term, it’s sticking it out long enough to get there that is difficult. While wage freezes, wage reductions, loss of traditional pensions and other necessary things that occur as companies and workers struggle through the worst downturn in 70 years seem difficult this is not the world of the 1930s, and globalization and other trends continue to move forward. The rebound will come, and not because of government largess, but because the lack of spending is driving up back log demand in the system that sooner or later business’ and consumers will have to start to address. At that point the switch will slowly turn back on and more efficient companies and wiser workers will be ready to answer the call.

The best thing that can be said for 2009 is that it is a once in a life time opportunity for both budsiness and employees to focus on driving up their competitiveness and marketability to be ready for the turn around.

1. We finally have enough pain that things are going to change. Without pain most of us keep doing things the same way.
2. Innovation is going to be on the increase. In every recession in the last 50 years it has been the birth place for our greatest gains
3.. A lot of talent that was supposed to be leaving the market place will be staying around longer since they cannot afford to retire.
4. The Millennial generation is beginning to realize that they cannot walk out of one job and find another job that easily.
5. Companies that have learned for the last down turn are working hard to keep their employees because they realize by the time they cover severance pay and other associated cost they have need to have those same people back.

This probably does not fit what you ask but I have quit talking about tough times and started talking about changing times. Remember the same skills that it takes to survive are the skills it takes to win and winning is a heck of a lot more fun than survival.