The economic times and the times ahead

The Economic Times...

These are troubled times, they really are. It can be read on the faces, felt in the conversations about. Disheartening isn't it to know that just a while back we were in a period where a blooming economy held promises galore, the financial institutions seeming strong as ever, job markets looking rosy with investments, projects & multi-nationals streaming in, stock exchanges doing brisk business spiraling sensex figures to new heights, the government's sitting pretty on a stockpile of forex and unfailingly everyone believing all was well with the world. SNAP !!!

January of 2009. Good Day friends. I wake up to the newspapers first thing everyday and as has been the case for quite some time now, the events that I flip through petrify me while my eyes go from soggy from sleep to a wide gape in the shock and awe of what the daily has to offer page after page. Its amazing how alert, wide awake I become, raring to take the day on; without my regular cup of morning-tea. These days the newspaper alone does the trick.
From global depression to the liquidity crisis, from numerous banks taking the tank to well known business firms shutting shops manifesting a domino effect on those below the chain, it has become strikingly evident that the very walls we built & relied upon are crumbling. In an economic order where the only life-blood is 'money' and 'profit' being the sole motive without much forethought to operational soundness, the current predicament has indeed left us stumbling for the door in absolute darkness.
I would not like to sight specific events here, they are way too many; be it the failure of i-banks across the globe, the very recent and disturbing Satyam fiasco or the worldwide economic atrophy leading to numerous job layoffs while companies operate in 'Safe Mode', etc etc... events that I am pretty sure you folks, being an integral part of the system must be very intently following just as I am; and aren't we concerned? Hell we are..!
What I would like to do though, is to take a more holistic view of all the chaos that has broken loose. I would like to believe that whatever has happened is for good. I assume it 'll restore sanity to an insane world out there. These events will question the very foundations upon which the establishments have built themselves upon and impel organizations to get their ethics right, be it operational ethics or ideologies and show more trust & personal responsibility in the way they conduct their business about. There was a lot of dirt in our economic arrangement and I believe its slowly and steadily being cleaned. So, things will change and will change for good. How soon? I cant tell; its winter and we're all waiting for the sun.

The Times Ahead...

So where are we heading? What has the future in store for us? How soon are things going to turn around? BIG QUESTIONS. In a world where your very own words & actions can be twisted, turned and used against you, in a world where out of the box thinking is what goes inside the box and in the world which is slowly losing perspective; the answers are hard to find. Sadly, we can only wait and watch.
And for all those of you who got disheartened by the cartoon quip I started this post with, don't just give up yet . We all have hopes and dreams and I know you're raring to see them through. This a period for the truth to dawn and transition to ensue and if you're feeling lucky go ahead, please don't hold yourself back. As for me, I'll lay low and wait for my time. After all, you make hay when the sun shines, but when it gets CLOUDY you sure should run for cover.