Guest Column: Entrepreneurs hold key to overcoming economic uncertainty

The year 2008 has brought with it a shift from consistent economic growth to uncertainty. For some, this is a first-time experience; for others, it is reminiscent of an situation not experienced in decades.

The recession of 1983 dealt the U.S. painfully high levels of unemployment, with interest rates topping out at 20 percent and a stock exchange trading at 700.

Now, as before, entrepreneurs are looking into a future that is uncertain. The economic recovery and strong growth following the 1983 recession proved much about the vital function that entrepreneurs play in the American economy. It will be the entrepreneurs of today, tapping into the same passion and the same set of survival skills that have driven entrepreneurs in the past, who will help drive us back toward economic prosperity.

Resourceful optimism

Entrepreneurship is not simply about new products or services. More often than not, it is a new idea that improves an existing product, service or process that is the innovation. Tackling an entrenched idea with a new idea requires resourcefulness. Jennifer Wilson of Jennifer Wilson Architect LLC started her Springfield-based firm with a very low marketing budget, and she had to be resourceful when deciding how to recruit clients. She used unconventional marketing techniques during her first year of business. Instead of using standard media outlets to advertise locally, she researched potential clients in niche markets, where the number of architectural firms providing her specific services was relatively low. She also capitalized on her time to attend networking events. Her success has been marked by her unwillingness to let the circumstances surrounding her startup dictate the outcome of her efforts. If one door doesn't open, entrepreneurs look for a window.

Market reactions

Entrepreneurs proactively analyze the market and move quickly to meet market requirements.

Jason Mitchell of Springfield design firm theworkshop 308 is a firm believer in the need to respond quickly to changes. During the past few years, theworkshop 308 has had to respond to the changes in demand for its architectural and furniture design products. Starting out with a focus on residential clients, Mitchell has seen the demand increase significantly in small-scale commercial design. The company was able to adapt quickly and capitalized on significant market share.

In times of uncertainty, it's important for entrepreneurs to be able to adapt quickly.

History repeats itself

Entrepreneurs are people who have decided to forgo the comfortable for the chance to reach the extraordinary. Part of that process includes calculating the risks to start a new venture. It is estimated that between 1,200 and 1,300 new businesses will be launched in the Springfield metropolitan area in a given year - and as many as 1,000 will fail. We learn from the failures. We prosper because of the successes. But it is the courage that the attempt demands that inspires us.

We have yet to see tangible economic challenges as troublesome as those we experienced in 1983, but the feelings of uncertainty and pessimism are strikingly similar. Entrepreneurs then rejected the status quo of their day and developed a blueprint for us. Those survival skills are still relevant today. As a new generation of entrepreneurs embraces what was learned from the past, we can have confidence that history will be repeated.

Dawn Hiles is executive director of the Edward Jones Center for Entrepreneurship and Innovation at Drury University in Springfield. She may be reached at dhiles@drury.edu.