The Silver Lining in the Economic Downturn

If you've ever listened to any inspirational speaker you've heard talk of finding opportunity when the universe presents a challenge. In fact the "opportunity in a challenge" theme runs through just about every inspirational talk I've ever heard. It's the meaning of popular comforting sayings ranging from "When Life Gives You Lemons, Make Lemonade" to "The Universe Never Closes One Door Without Opening Another", not to mention the classic phrase by Nietzsche, "That which does not kill us makes us stronger".

That stuff is all "easy to say" but hard to remember (let alone apply!) when times get really tough. Yet the truth is that the economic downturn really has presented itself with some opportunities, and we'd all do well to spend a few minutes thinking about them.

There'll be no shortage of commentators on how to learn from this mess on a personal and financial level, so let me concentrate on the opportunities in the areas of health and nutrition.

First- If you can't eat out as much, consider counting that as a blessing. We eat out way too much anyway. Use this period of belt tightening as an excuse to start eating home more. Every study over the last several decades has confirmed that the more meals you eat out the more likely you are to be overweight. Prepare some of your own food, and learn to put mindfulness into it.

Two- Since most folks have less dollars to spend frivolously, spend your food dollars wisely. Make coffee at home a few days (or more) a week and skip the $4 lattes. (You can buy an awful lot of fruits and vegetables on a Starbucks budget.)

Three- Since there's less money for gas, not to mention going out and "doing stuff", use that as an opportunity to rediscover the home (and the people who live there with you). I know it's a really "retro" concept, but what about meals together as a family? There are studies on that as well, and every one of them shows better performance in school, better well-being and better mental and physical health in kids who eat at least one meal a day with their family.

Four- If you're cutting back on expenses, cut back smartly. If you eat meat, for example, continue to eat the expensive grass-fed kind but eat much less of it. (As Michael Pollan put it, "spend more, eat less".) I'd rather have one grass-fed burger a week than 7 Happy Meals. Believe me your body will thank you for that choice.

Five- Rediscover your own ability to amuse yourself. Those of us who grew up a few decades ago know well that it's actually possible- amazing as it sounds- to survive without constant texting, iPods, messaging, social networking, YouTube and even Google. I'm not suggesting you turn everything off, but you might use this extra "stay-at-home" time to discover how interesting actual old fashioned conversation can be when you do it with people you like (or love). Not to mention really old-fashioned entertainments- like reading!


Finally, consider this post that I found on one of the financial message boards the other day that really inspired me. We had just had one of the worst days in the market, and people were discussing what to do with their diminishing portfolios. There was a clear mood of panic all over the place. Here's the post that caught my eye:

"What's the worst that could happen? That we'd lose all our money? This has just gotten me to focus on the important things we do have- our health, our family, our kids, our dog. If we lose it all, so be it. We can rebuild. As long as we have our health and our love, we'll survive this. It's only money."

What a great time to reassess your life and focus on what's really valuable and be thankful for what you do have.