“It was the best of times, it was the worst of times, it was the age of wisdom, it was the age of foolishness, it was the epoch of belief, it was the epoch of incredulity, it was the season of Light, it was the season of Darkness, it was the spring of hope, it was the winter of despair …” (Charles Dickens, “A Tale of Two Cities”).

Although Charles Dickens wrote this in the mid-nineteenth century about a different time and a distant place—the French Revolution—he could have been writing about the recent downshift in the U.S. economy. For some, this economy is “the best of times;” for others, it is “the worst of times.” Wall Street has gone from the “season of Light” to the “season of Darkness.” In the midst of the current economic uncertainty, there are those who look to the future with great trepidation; for them, it is the “winter of despair.” Others look to the future through the eyes of an optimist; for them, it is the “spring of hope.”

That some people are able to maintain a positive focus and perform admirably and successfully, regardless of the conditions that surround their efforts, has always fascinated me. Faced with identical circumstances, some people rise to the challenge, tapping into the best in themselves, and achieve what others cannot even imagine. Consider this: In tough times, 25 percent of businesses fail, 70 percent survive and 5 percent thrive.

On a broader scale, some people play the cards they are dealt while others fold 'em and go home. Some people thrive on the challenge; others wilt in the heat of battle. The resilience of the human spirit is nature's way of equipping us with the fuel we need to soar above whatever obstacles we encounter.

Since 1854, we have experienced 33 economic downturns in the United States, each lasting about one-and-a-half years, followed by an expansion of about three years. It seems we've discovered a way to handle these downturns more effectively over the past 60 years. Since 1948, we have had 10 recessions; the average contraction is 11 months and the average expansion is four years. We spend 80 percent of our time in good economic times! If you work in sales and management long enough, you will experience a downturn.

What's the point? Economic nirvana is always followed by economic nervousness that is always followed by nirvana that is always followed by nervousness. It's a cycle. The most important thing to know about tough times is that they pass and are replaced by good times. Businesspeople who wring their hands today will ring their cash registers tomorrow. Some people engage tough times and see opportunity; others experience tough times as adversity. Those who prevail in tough times maintain their perspective and embrace this philosophy: This, too, will pass.