Whilst experiencing a recent dose of man flu (with symptoms including fear of imminent death and Shakespearean dramatics) I was subjected to a couple of days on the sofa with only daytime television for company. Luckily however, I found salvation in this month's Channel 4 ‘Indian Winter' season, which was both inspiring and captivating.
The 'Indian Winter' season included an assortment of programmes exploring India's rich culture, discovering the culinary traditions and hearing real human stories of the people that shape one of the world's most diverse countries. But it did also show a brutal reality of life on the streets and in the slums and tackled issues such as poverty, substance abuse, hardship and heartache.
Yet, through this adversity India's economy is amongst one of the fastest growing in the world and it's been predicted that by 2020 the country's GDP could quadruple if it continues to develop at this rate.
Just considering the antithesis of challenges and opportunities India battles in equal measure made me realise that through hard times the occasion for working hard and taking risks has the best pay off.
In our industry we're often put in difficult positions and tested by clients to come up with the best solution to their problem, especially during the recent recession. By using our creativity and efficiency to tackle these issues we have inspired and innovated new ways of working that are now common practice.
So instead of saying "No, unfortunately we can't provide that service", 2010 should be the year of saying Yes! Make it the year of overcoming your previous obstacles and instilling your clients' trust that you can still do an excellent job in undesirable conditions.
By embracing these challenges instead of shying away from them standards will rise and that's how you'll stand out against competitors
Now if that isn't a silver lining on a rainy day, I don't know what is!
