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As the country waits for the economic downturn to pass, some describe the economy as an engine with gears, slowed down for now, waiting for lubrication (in the form of credit).  When the machinery gets what it’s been missing for the last few years, some say it will get back to spinning at its previous speed.  They see a recovery.

But that metaphor doesn’t capture what’s really going on.  Some things aren’t ever recovered from, and this economic slowdown is one.  Because  what’s really happening isn’t happening to one system, its happening to the ground under our feet.  What’s happening is more like an earthquake, shaking all institutions and markets, forever changing the landscape.

Architecture and engineering can protect new buildings against earthquakes, as long as the forethought and planning is put in at build time.  If this care isn’t taken, the next fifty or hundred-year quake will tear down the tallest structure.

Steve Yastrow of Yastrow & Company talks about how to react to today’s business environments in terms of “recalibration” – and that’s an idea that’s perfect for what’s going on.

The time for incremental changes and hunkering down are long gone – and that’s the lesson of today’s downturn.

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