My brother-in-law, John is a night owl and likes to ride his bike to the corner video store to rent a movie. It was almost closing time at the video store when he walked up to the counter to pay for his movie when a guy walked in with a paper bag over his head holding a gun. Since Halloween was only as few weeks ago, John thought this was a remnant costume left over, he thought it was just one of the video clerks’ friends who came to pick him up to go out after his shift, he thought it was a scene of a movie he should have rented. But when the armed robber started waving his gun at John and asked him to move to the far corner of the video store while the clerk emptied the cash register, John realized this was not a joke.

Suddenly fear permeated the store, the silence and the sound of the robber’s voice with specific life-threatening instructions felt heavy and paralyzing. John was now at the mercy of a confused, intoxicated, distressed and troubled man.

From innocence to horror within seconds- What happens when this reality check hits us point blank and we realize our lives are in danger? When our leader becomes dangerous and we have little choice but to surrender to their harmful and threatening agenda?

John is okay- has a new heroic story to share for Thanksgiving. But John will never be the same nor will the 20-year old video clerk who works night shifts to help pay for college. All for a mere $179 dollars made from Monday night business.

Walk slowly, pay attention and stay out of confused and crazed convicts way.

I’ve been reading about the “R” word this morning and found another “R” word to accompany that. There has been a Rapid decline in this Recession in the last several months. Wish I knew this when I first started my kitchen remodel at the beginning of the summer- but that’s another story- one that makes me lose my appetite (which means I don’t expect to cook much in my new kitchen-:)

This morning’s SF Chronicle article titled, Jobless rates bolts to 14-year high, and outlines how our economy is deteriorating at a rapidly alarming pace. This week, our new President gave us renewed hope of a better future- but still this doesn’t pay for our monthly bills that are piling up nor the holiday vacation we must cancel and the new friend who just called you to announce they’ve been laid off after 9 years of work.

We are clearly caught in a titlewave right now and if any of you have surfed waves before, you know about wave strategy. That’s when you get wiped out by one wave and just as you are getting back up for air, another hits you, spins you around only to lose your breath to prepare for the next onslaught. First it was the housing collapse, then mounting foreclosures, then it was hard-to-get credit and financial market upheaval and then unemployment, and I could go on. And the picture looks grim for the next 6 months at least.

The good news is we will rebound from this- we always do.

The tough news is that we have to work a lot harder and smarter to stand out than ever before.

Here are 5 Surfing Tips to Ride the Recession Title wave:

1. Replace the time you spend panicking with working smarter- working longer hours and spiraling down into panic is not the answer, work smarter and utilize your tools.

2. Be efficient- In everything you do, be efficient in your meetings, your writing, your prospecting efforts and even your friendships.

3. Plan for your Plan B- What’s next? And after that? Don’t let yourself get blind-sided.

4. ROI- This doesn’t stand for Running Out of Income, it stands for Return on Investment! Your prospects are very risk-adverse now so put together a reason for them to buy and make them a hero for their sound investment in your solution.

5. Pump up your Listening- This is the time when customers want to feel heard and listened to. They don’t want you to tell them what they need- even if your recommendations are right.

We vote for hope

We buy hope

We sit with hope

We hold on to hope

We speak with words of hope

We watch with hope

We run with hope

We take risks and hope

We listen with hope

We sell with hope

We hold on to the promise of hope each day

This is the most exciting presidential election in history- get out there and vote. What are you waiting for?