There is no doubt that the recession has had a devastating affect on entrepreneurial endeavour worldwide. But there are always two ways to look at a recession: it is either the down curve of at the end of a boom, or it is the beginning of the up curve of the next boom. Entrepreneurs all around the world are waiting eagerly for the latter definition to become the more popular. Knowing when is the right time to jump back into the swamp is the key to avoiding the alligators. Even when there are signs of a recovery on the way, there is always the fear of the dreaded “double dip”. This happens when the economy is just not strong enough to sustain continued upward thrust and is usually the case when large numbers of people have been made redundant or lost their businesses. This is certainly the case at the moment. There are horrendous numbers being put about in the UK for instance, with the possibility of three million on the dole by next year. This is bound to have an additional impact on the economy. Entrepreneurs looking for their break will probably sit things out until employment numbers start to rise again.

But it’s not as simple as that. Wait too long and you may lose the best opportunity of your life. The key to being a successful entrepreneur is being ahead of the crowd. The guy who started buying gold six months ago is now laughing all the way to the bank. Whoever buys in now is taking more of a risk because the curve is already at record levels. This does not mean it can’t go higher, just that the risk level goes up. While this might be the perfect time to buy property as sector prices begin to creep up, there is nothing to say that the current upswing is not down to some over optimistic purchases from cash rich buyers. The real increases won’t begin until first time buyers are back on the scene and with mortgages much harder to come by now, that may not be for some time. The average deposit required to buy a house in the UK now is 35,000. There aren’t many youngsters with that sort of money under the mattress.

But smart people will be on the lookout for opportunities. For instance, governments all around the world will be busy putting together incentives for employers to take on more staff. This might be the perfect time to set up a small manufacturing base with a competitive labour cost. Most high streets will be showing empty shops for lease or buy. Locations which a few years ago might have been deemed as “dead mens’ shoes” are now free and waiting for occupation. But the very fact that there are so many gives pause for thought. Is this the best time to step in and sign some low cost leasing arrangement with a desperate landlord, or will you be landing yourself with some unnecessary overheads for a couple of years before the retail sector really picks up steam again?

The impact of the recession on entrepreneurs has been to give a dent to their confidence. This is not necessarily a bad thing. It was overconfidence which got us into this mess in the first place. Perhaps the next generation of business leaders will build in more realistic risk into their forecasts. Whatever the future holds, the prize as always will go to the most innovative, the most courageous and the most creative of entrepreneurs. The recession will not deprive men and women of ideas, the opposite is true. Necessity is the mother of invention. We can look forward to some brilliant developments in consumer products which in themselves will help to pull us up out of the pit. The world needs good entrepreneurs, with the daring to do what others fear, now more than ever.