Credit Crunch Creativity
October 2008
In the midst of crisis lies opportunity. Personally I am quite excited about this new chance to review my life. It has been evident for a number of years that the unsustainable economic growth in the west was going to come to an abrupt end. Now the bubble has burst and it’s time to welcome a new and more sustainable era. ‘Business as usual’ has been more about greed than need over the past decade. Conspicuous consumption is exhausting and more of us are asking ourselves: “how much do I really need to be happy?” Will another pair of designer shoes make a significant difference to my life or are there more important things in to consider first?
With the banks, the high streets and the global economy in turmoil we are all left to guess what will happen next? A financial tsunami or another recession? Firstly the government and the banks promote spending and we all follow. Now we are desperately trying to find someone to blame. In the UK Gordon Brown has started an inquiry and in the US the FBI has already moved in. To do what, I wonder? Find all that money that fell down the back of the sofa? What will happen when the dust settles? One thing is for sure – the days of piling up debt and spending sprees are over. It’s time, to pull up your socks and resume responsibility.
The writing is on the wall: Save before you spend! We are witnessing a global adjustment and there will be winners and losers. But the real question is: how does it affect you and me? We can’t ignore all that talk about crisis and recession. I clearly feel that with the credit crunch on the agenda for some time to come we will tap into a new creativity. Recently my hairdresser told me that her flat was featured in a magazine. It had been ‘recycled’. Originally featured in a magazine nine years ago, it has popped up again now under the creative headline: ‘Credit Crunch Interior Tricks’. The media is swamped with articles like: “Credit Crunch Cooking – more for less” and “Credit Crunch Fashion – mix you old designer favourites with High Street finds”, Credit Crunch Holidays – home swapping. So in short - the good news: we never cease to innovate and find way to capitalise even on bad times. I guess we have now entered an era of Credit Crunch Creativity.
Clearly every problem has a solution and economies do eventually recover. This proverb sums it up perfectly: ‘When the wind of change rises, some people build walls. Others build windmills.’
By futurist Anne Lise Kjaer, 2008