There was the Gulf War, the Asian Financial Crisis, Sars and the bird flu among others. Not all of them were full-blown recessions, of course, but the economy did take hits - and for us in the corporate services industry, spending from clients were negatively affected.

In bad times, advertising, marketing and our business - public relations - tend to be one of the first things clients cut back on. It's understandable. No one wants to look like they are spending when others have cut back too. They cut their budget and our fees get reduced.

The biggest challenges for the agency life is managing our cashflow. Most clients pay with a longer lead time, but not all do. One client, without naming names, paid us only six months after the project was completed. On our end, since we always like to maintain our reputation in the market, we always pay our suppliers - whether our clients pay on time or not.

Things like that makes running our own operations difficult but we also have to understand our clients' situations.

This current crisis is definitely the worst recession we've seen since we founded the company.

But with all we've experienced in the past, I think we are relatively calm about what is happening. We are not too stressed unlike 10 years ago when we went through the last crisis. We firmly believe we can survive as long as we are disciplined with cashflow management. We also believe that things can only get better over time.

Other lessons I've learned? Value your supportive clients, loyal staff, and suppliers. They are the ones who will help pull you through the crisis.

Any advice I have for other agencies? Do not let any problems you face hold you back from new business ideas. Use the slowdown to re-invent your business and get ready for the recovery.