Watch for signs and make your move (in business, that is).

The economy is going to recover. When, I don't know, nobody does. But it will recover. It always does. One big question is what it will look like when that happens. I think it's essential for those who fret about the economy to look at small signs of change. Not in the usual way, not by looking at the usual indicators like the Dow or consumer spending reports and the like. I mean take notice of small changes or tweaks in the nature of how business is operating in the turmoil of today.

The Wall Street Journal had an interesting article the other day describing how while companies are laying off large numbers of employees, they are also hiring at the same time. But who they're hiring and for what skills is what's different. In the struggle to survive, businesses are changing and adapting as they try to navigate their way to a profitable future. So rather than hire for the same skill sets for the same jobs in the same way, new employees are brought on for positions that didn't exist before or have changed job descriptions in adaptive ways.

Every business in America should be doing this. We don't know how radical or how nuanced the changes in the economy will turn out to be, but smart companies will watch carefully and make these adaptive changes along the way. Those that do will be in a better position to thrive once we pull out of this. In fact, they may well begin to thrive now! Why not? What better time to innovate and experiment? Hunkering down will leave you where you were before this whole mess began. What's the point of that? Crisis brings opportunity for those willing to step up, and they will see success first.