Global shockwaves have brought unexpected business challenges, but the survival game keeps the adrenaline running

In a few months, a revolution has recast the rules of the business game and thrust us into a relegation fight in the global prosperity league. So much is new. Base rates are at at an all-time low, with the prospect that they will hit zero; the number of Web users broke through the one billion mark during a single month for the first time; and big names such as Samsung have posted first ever quarterly losses.

A lot of what we knew we could rely upon such as the supremacy of the City and a robust global supply chain has been consigned to history. Other parts of the business equation have flipped 180 degrees, from accelerating inflation to deflation, from playing banks off against one another to begging for their attention, and from skills shortages to a lack of customers.

My day job running a £3m, 30-staff operation is changing, too. While we recruited and awarded 10 per cent pay rises nine months ago, for the first time we have been forced to make a series of redundancies. As recently as December, I could not have imagined discussing a 20 per cent pay cut with my team, let alone seeing it accepted with relief as a sign of bold leadership.

We may not be on a four-day week yet like KPMG, but we are signed-up members of the Austerity Club. And it was with a shock that we welcomed our first 22-stone bailiff, notepad in fist, courtesy of a jittery landlord. Each day brings challenges. The upside is that I've not felt so excited in business for as long as I can remember. The collective mantra has returned to the basics of buy low, sell high, collect early, pay late, cut overheads and boost marketing. It's energising getting your hands greasy under the bonnet of your business again because you can't afford the mechanic's bill.

Alex Pratt OBE is founder of www.seriousreaders.com