Do you remember where you were September 15^th, 2008.  No?   My day began with a staff meeting and lunch with one of our consultants, the afternoon, a scheduled meeting with a prospective client was postponed.  Not a particularly memorable day.  Funny I had to look back at my calendar.  How about you? Still nothing coming to mind?  Interesting, because that was the day everything changed.  That was the day they threw out the rule book on business as we know it.

September 15^th was the day that Lehman Brothers filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection, the largest bankruptcy filing in US history.  The Dow Jones closed down 500 points that day, at the time, the largest drop since September 11^th.  Five days later, Lehman Brothers was liquidated, beginning a tsunami that took down the credit markets and launched an economic meltdown around the world.

Yesterday, Nobel Prize winning economist Paul Krugman declared that the recession (which technically began back in December 2007), should end by  September 2009.  But what will that mean?  He also predicted that unemployment will continue to rise.  That’s what I mean when I say the rules have changed.  We’re hanging on for “back to normal” but nobody knows what it will look like.

Since we don’t know what to expect, it’s time to prepare for the new normal - an extra level of preparation for our career path as well.  Imagine you’re taking a day hike in the mountains - when you were younger, you might just have grabbed a bottle of water and a granola bar - but if you’ve ever experienced any uncertainty while hiking - the feeling you’re not sure whether you’ve taken the wrong path - and you’ve heard about other hikers being lost for days - you realize that isn’t going to do it.  To be sure you get there and back you decide to pack a compass, rain gear, substantial provisions, matches, and a fully charged cell phone.

The analogy to career preparation is that to be certain you get where you’re going, relying on your wits probably isn’t enough.  You’ll be far better off if you have mentors, coaches, trusted advisors and a team of colleagues you can rely on.  If your company is offering training and development, you need to take advantage of it - especially develop skills that are not your strengths.

In that spirit, I want to let you know that our next Speak Like a CEO Boot Camp has been scheduled for October 15th and 16th in Boston and it is going to be a dynamic session.  If you sign up this week we’re also giving you a complimentary coaching session.  It’s an hour and a half, one on one, with one of our top coaches.  This is the first time I’ve ever done this and it may be the last.  So if you’re really interested in attending our boot camp, this would be the time to let us know.  Contact Meredith O’Connor by Friday to take advantage of this offer.  moconnor@bates-communications.com

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