Shifting Gears

Some of us are still in shock after the devastating events of September 11. Others, like my friend Jane Applegate, have been moved to action. After a series of breakfasts she was hosting was cancelled due to the attacks, Jane, a journalist and entrepreneur, had one of those middle-of-the-night epiphanies, and Back on Track America was born.

Magazine deadlines being what they are, I'm writing this column before November 13, the scheduled date for Back On Track America's (BOTA) take-off from Washington, DC's Union Station on an Amtrak train bound for New York City. If things have played out as planned, the first of a series of BOTA workshops and town hall meetings was held there on November 15. For the next six months (through May), BOTA will be hosting similar events throughout the nation for you to work with experts to refine the skills you need for starting and growing your business. Check out the sidebar above for the current schedule. And check back on our Web site, over the next few months; Entrepreneur is a BOTA sponsor, and we will be keeping you informed throughout the journey.

Speaking of getting back on track, how are you doing? It's the last month of a truly horrible year for many of us. The dotcom collapse, rising unemployment rates, an unstable world and national economy, the terrorist attacks and the ensuing anthrax scares have all contributed to a shaky national psyche. While it's still important to get back to business, as I said last month, I fear business as usual is a long way off.

But we Americans are hearty folk. We will continue both to start new businesses and to grow the ones we have. And we'll need resources to do it right. That includes employees, money, equipment, software, vehicles and the like, of course. But that also includes information.

In this issue of Entrepreneur, we bring you our look at 2002. Not only do we tell you what businesses will be booming next year, but we also look at new markets and new methods of doing business. Plus, there's a host of experts chiming in with their forecasts for the year ahead.

September 11 marked the beginning of an age of uncertainty for most of us. We don't pretend to have all the answers here at Entrepreneur. But we will continue to offer solutions for the challenges you face daily. Several years ago, former President Clinton called entrepreneurs the "engine that drives the economy." After all, you are the folks who helped dig us out of the last recession. And hopes are high you'll do it again. So in 2002, we'll bring you more of what you need to grow your businesses, the smart way.

This will be a markedly different holiday for many of us. Like you, we at Entrepreneur hope to find comfort and peace this holiday season.