By now, you’ve probably heard that we’re in a global economic recession. The International Monetary Fund has projected that the world’s economy will shrink by around 1% in 2009. Around now you might be saying to yourself, “Well 1% isn’t that bad.”, but think about the scale of those numbers for a moment. Global GDP for 2008 amounts to around $69,490,000,000,000 (yes, that’s $69.5 Trillion), so one percent of that equates to, roughly, the combined GPD of Japan and India (who have the third and fourth largest economies in the world, respectively). No way around it, that’s a pretty bad prediction. But the doom and gloom spouted by 6 o’clock news can be a good thing. You’re a small business, not a mega-conglomerate car manufacturer or a giant bank who’s facing a balance sheet full of toxic assets, which means that this recession can work in your favor, you just have to know how to work it. Keep Reading