ICM - Leeds Design Agency

Having been subjected to yet another depressing news item of how we are going to hell in a handcart due to the dreaded ‘R word’, I thought I’d put pen to paper or fingers to keys and share the views of a thoroughly Yorkshire lass.

Why can’t we all work together during these gloomy times? Very ‘Dunkirk spirit’ I know, but I believe it’s very important to show our humanity towards others. While there’s all this doom and gloom about, I believe if we all work together and support each other in different ways, whether it be emotionally, with advice, or financially etc. we can all help each other through these times and come out of it fitter and stronger.

Us ‘Yorkshire folk’ can start the ball rolling with a “We’re proud to be supporting Yorkshire campaign”. Strong businesses could help the weaker ones so that rather than letting good, viable businesses that have fallen on bad times go to the wall, give them a helping hand. It might just be some advice that they need to help them along, not necessarily financial. They might gain help from the more successful companies or from people like Business Link and Yorkshire Forward. I read YEPs Business Tuesday last week – the articles were fantastic, full of hope and certainly made me feel more optimistic. They spoke about all the things I have been saying about investing in training this year: the need for innovation and how Business Link and Yorkshire Forward can help.

We will get this campaign off the ground together, share our knowledge and our thoughts, create a brand which we would make readily available on our website for anyone to use at any time on their own literature or however they see fit. It would be like a rallying cry. Get everyone behind the idea of supporting each other but not at the exclusion of working with businesses outside the area – more a case of charity begins at home, we become stronger and share our successes. It will be like a ripple-effect with Yorkshire at the centre. Sorry for rambling a bit, I’m just very excited.

In these gloomy times we need some optimism and as we know, good stuff as well as bad can spread like wildfire. As Bernard Ginns at YPN said in his article last week ‘Look to the firms who refuse to take part in the recession’.
I say hear, hear and let’s share some good news for a change because people are getting heartily sick of hearing all the negative news. Let’s look for the opportunities out there. There is always some good to come out of bad.

So come on all you good Yorkshire folk (whether born and bred or just here because it’s a great place to live and work) let’s all pull together and lead the way into happier times.