Ask an Expert: Entrepreneurs, you can tough it out

— -- Q: Do you think the next four years will be better for small business than the past four? Other than the last 12 months or so, I was pretty happy with how things were in my business. — Taylor

A: If I had the opportunity to give a State of the Small Business speech, it would go something like this:

My fellow small business owners: Here we are on the eve of an historic presidential inauguration that all Americans can rightly be proud of, yet the state of small business is one of worry and concern. We stand on the brink of an era that is full of both promise and peril.

The economy is the worst we have seen in over 50 years. Capital is hard to find. Finding new customers is even harder. And because consumers are reluctant to spend, businesses all around are truncating and cutting back. You probably know someone who is out of work.

So what are we to do?

First, knowing that we have faced tough times before — and made it through — should help us know that we can survive these challenging times as well:

• Back in 1980, right when Ronald Reagan took office, inflation was running at 19% and unemployment was at 12%. Try running a business in that sort of climate!

• 1932 saw the Great Depression, with 25% unemployment, no spending to speak of, and followed by a recession just a few years later.

• The Civil War saw the destruction of the economy of half the country.

But knowing that times were tougher before does not put food on the table. It does not help you meet payroll. It is an intellectual comfort, but not much of a financial one.

So, while you have to believe, you also have to act.

Change is in the air, and change is what is needed. There is a saying • "if you always do what you have always done, you will always get what you have always got."

But that's not true today.

If you continue to do what you have always done, you will likely get less than you are used to getting. Those are the times we are living in. So what do you do? You have to do more. You may have to work more. Or advertise or network more. You might have to hustle more, or schmooze more, or be more creative.