It's easy to be a pessimist when things really are bad. But the truth is that opportunity doesn't fly as a passenger on the wings of today's economy. It charts its own course...

I saw a piece recently at YoungEntrepreneur that reflected on a short list of companies that were started during a recession. Why would someone do that - start a business in the middle of a recession? For the same reasons they ever start a business. They see a need they can meet and they like the challenge that exists whether you start a business in good times or bad times.

Among the businesses the blog post mentions: Microsoft, which was started during the recession of Jimmy Carter's presidency.

Makes you stop and think, doesn't it...