Weekend Reading: The 1970s Had a Big Bright Side, Too
This article appears as part of Casey Weade's Weekend Reading for Retirees series. Every Friday, Casey highlights four hand-picked articles on trending retirement topics and delivers them straight to your email inbox. Get on the list here.
Today’s economic climate is continually being compared to the 1970s. Inflation, high gas prices, supply shortages, etc. seem to set the scene for a modernized 70s replay, but while times were tough back then, the decade still produced a chapter of optimism.
READ THE ARTICLEInnovation amidst uncertainty: Much like today, many businesses struggled to stay the course a half-century ago; however, entrepreneurial visionaries also invented new companies and world-transforming industries that we’ve come to know and utilize today. Home Depot, FedEx, Nike, Microsoft, Apple and Ben & Jerry’s are just a few of the many household names developed during this supposed “dismal decade”, despite what was happening in the market or Iran.
Looking back even further to the Great Depression, we also saw the birth of Walt Disney Co., Krispy Kreme, Polaroid Holdings and Texas Instruments. Not to mention, there was the introduction of Hyatt Hotels during the 1958 recession, plus our introduction to Google during the 1998 dot.com crash. As author Adrian Wooldridge says here, “We have encountered problems just as bad as the ones we have today and overcome them.” How? “Through a mixture of intellectual boldness and gritty determination.”
Hurdle through the hard: Your instinct is to avoid pain – even wallow in it at times. However, in times like these, the phrase, “No pain, no gain”, should be your motto.