Perhaps I’m late to this party, but there’s still a lot of change being experienced by people as the economic meltdown reverberates. In the process of all the upheaval, a lot has been written about what people are doing to deal with the unwelcomed loss of jobs, money, homes, educational pursuits and dreams of a certain future.

Early in my corporate career, the idea of losing my job was outright frightening. And when I heard in my 20’s that a person my age would change jobs seven times before retirement, I was mortified. 

Since that time I did lose a job – or two. With that came an overflow of fear as I grappled with the unknown, how to hang on to what I had and what to do next. These are natural responses to both real and imagined threats. Surprisingly, I not only survived, but in many ways I thrived. Over the years, I’ve learned how to turn threats into opportunities.

Whenever we’re threatened, we have the opportunity to emotionally react to the situation, or intellectually interpret it. We can panic, get depressed, throw things and make matters worse, or we can step back, assess the situation and ask – “How can I turn this into an opportunity.” Opportunity can be something new, different or beneficial for you or others involved.

We’re all walking on somewhat of a tightrope called life. If we lean left or right, that leads to oblivion and certain death. If we stand still, we’re destined for mediocrity. What we must do if we don’t want to fall or freeze is - keep moving.