A Reflection

About a year ago, I was in an office at a mid-sized public relations firm in Manhattan having a conversation with two agency principles that hinged, in part, on the outlook for the business and the economy in general.

I remembered them being quite surprised when I indicated that in 12 to 18 months, things were going to get quite ugly from an economic standpoint once people were no longer able to take equity out of their homes to fund a lifestyle that had grown larger than their take-home pay. The response I got was one of surprise and, at least to some degree, disbelief.

I say that not to prove that I'm an economic soothsayer. In fact, I have no special talents in that area other than those I acquired from my work as a financial journalist for about a decade that include being able to read company financial statements and understanding various economic indicators. My thesis was built entirely on the fact that spending was outpacing wage growth and the spending increase was largely built on home-equity bets.

To bring this back to public relations, I urge all practitioners, financial or not, to gain a better understanding of the economy and what it means to their business. Often we as an industry are very guilty of chasing the latest booming trend only to be burned to a crisp when it goes south. By understanding the economy, practitioners can get a better grasp on which trends are sustainable and worthy of an investment of time or energy.