2009 Year of the Cockroach survive and thrive!

This will be a short but sweet post based on recent events and Greg Boser’s mantra for 2009. If you follow Greg Boser on twitter you may have caught a conversation that took place between Greg and Todd Mallicoat a.k.a Stuntdubl. Greg goes on to describe why his mantra for 2009 is “I’m a cockroach” I’ve included a screenshot of the conversation below.

It’s a tough time out there for sure and despite all the bleak news I’m reading and hearing on the radio one thing one constant seems true “you have to be really really good at what you do to survive in these times.”

Coming from a coder’s perspective I have always said you are only as good as what you can create. It is not enough to just be good at code anymore you have to be GREAT! And you have to be great at customer service, marketing and everything else that comes with having a solid business model. As in Greg’s mantra being a cockroach you have to find a way to not only survive but to thrive. It is obviously not the same way for everyone, it may mean learning new skills or spammin and jammin at 3am (ahem), what ever it is… You do what you have to in order to stay alive.

Another blog posts I caught goes on to talk about how some of the greatest innovations came from times just like these. To quote the blog post

Recessions are opportunities for real innovators. Those who are motivated, inspired and committed to thinking out of the box will rise to the occasion and achieve success that grows exponentially as the economy cycles.

Blog Post: Hey Chicken Little! The Sky is NOT Falling!

So this brings me to my next question. Knowing that in a few hours the President of the United States will be meeting with General Motors to discuss plans for its future, I’m still asking myself what I posted on twitter.

What if instead of bailing out General Motors we (and I mean We because it’s taxpayer money) gave money to new innovative car companies instead? What if instead of feeding the same old formula we push for companies to survive and thrive rewarding innovation.

Not to pick on General Motors specifically but I’m sure research marketing was well aware that competitive companies likely Toyota and Honda where pushing for alternative fuel and hybrid technologies while they were still cranking out SUV’s. Earlier this year at the Auto Show American car companies where still pushing SUV’s with base a price of 40-50k while competitors where showcasing hybrid and electric technologies.

My question to you is are you caught up in the current media hype or are you strategizing to survive and thrive?

Secondly knowing that there is going to be several bailouts do you feel this is a time to break free from the old and invest in new innovative companies who could move faster to market with new and proven technologies?

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