Fast Company: An Upbeat Cure for the Recession Blues

Looking for something to read at the gym, I flipped past the same old stuff--Forbes, Newsweek, and People--and thought I'd give Fast Company a try. I'd never heard of it, but the cover suggested technology and business, so it seemed worth a read.

Inside, I found attractive layouts and articles that were fresh. They were about companies I'd never heard of, doing things I'd never thought of. It was a business magazine and it talked about the economy, but in a positive way. It wasn't the same-old dismal woes and "things are gonna get worse" predictions. After I read Seth Godin's article on "What Did You Do in the 2000s?" I was so inspired, I went home and emailed the link to a lot of my friends.

Godin wrote:
"Here's a question that you should clip out and tape to your bathroom mirror....What did you do back when interest rates were at their lowest in 50 years, crime was close to zero, great employees were looking for good jobs, computers made product development and marketing easier than ever, and there was almost no competition for good news about great ideas?...It's never too late to choose optimism, to choose action, to choose excellence. The best thing is that it only takes a moment -- just one second -- to decide."

I've only looked at two or three issues, but I've found them to have a similar upbeat, no-nonsense attitude. Fast Company doesn't make or accept excuses. It doesn't deny that the economy is bad or that jobs are scarce, but I think it presents a fresher way of looking at things.

I started circling great inspirational quotes and eventually gave up. There were just too many.

Fast Company doesn't just talk about how things could be; the magazine likes to back up its assertions by providing examples of innovative businesses or risk-taking individuals. It mentions companies like Intuit, Borland, Google--companies that have not only survived, but prospered. It covers risk-taking ventures like Whirlpool's Insperience Studio in Atlanta, where consumers can test out appliances, and Toyota's attempt to reach Gen Y with a new brand of hip, inexpensive cars called Scion.

The July 2003 issue addressed questions about job, career, security. One article offered suggestions on "How to Stand Out from the Crowd." Another article offered suggestions on coping with anxious times: Focus on What's Working, Instill Confidence and Confront Risk Intelligently by learning to operate in ways that make the danger less dangerous.

An article on Identity Shift in the November 2003 issue looks at the question of risk taking and career changing from another angle, questioning the advice that people often get and give, with some suggestions on how to make a choice that's right for you.

The magazine doesn't promise that things will be easy or that all risky ventures will succeed. In an article on Rational Expectations, Marshall Goldsmith is quoted with:

"Nothing about this economy prevents you from pursuing your long-term dreams. There are tons of options. It's just that most of these options involve work. ...The nice thing about achievement is, when it's something you do for yourself that's important to you, even if you don't get the money, you still feel like you've won."

Some articles, like "The 7 Habits of Spectaculary Unsuccessful CEOs" talked about formulas for failure--but always from the positive slant of how to minimize pitfalls. Other articles talked about safer ways to take risks or how to make your own luck. There were short profiles of people who made major career changes and suggestions on how to redefine success and make the most of a difficult market. And so on. The issue was filled with lots to inspire people to get moving or at least take a good look in the mirror.

In a letter to the editor, one person mentioned how he used the magazine to increase his business, by sending selected articles to clients to get them fired up.

(Update: December 2003:)
I've read several issues now, some under the old editor and some under the new. Like any magazine, I've found some issues more interesting than others, but overall, I'm still enjoying my subscription. I take magazines with me to appointments at places with waiting rooms (hairdressers, doctors, etc.) in the hope that if I finish it I can leave the magazine behind and not just toss it in the trash. I tend to bring Fast Company home again.

The November issue had a moving story about a CEO recently diagnosed with ALS (Lou Gehrig's disease) who, instead of giving up, had overseen the transition in his company and even founded a new company. In another article I found out about AgraQuest, a company that develops natural, water soluble fungicides and biopesticides based on bacteria instead of harsh chemicals.

The December issue had a feature about Fetzer Vineyards, and how they managed to go organic, pay a living wage, offer English classes to their workers and still turn a profit. The cover story on how Walmart's policy of low prices is driving many US companies out of business and/or forcing them to close local plants and send work overseas was a real eye opener for me.

Fast Company challenges me in more ways than I expected.



The newstand price per issue is US $5, but a one-year US subscription (12 issues) is a lot cheaper. The price varies. Check the website for the latest subscription specials.

Each issue seems to be around 100-140 pages. Of the 103 available pages in the July issue (including the covers), around 40 of them were ads. The ads are all full-page and nicely done. Full page ads are easier for designers to work around and tend to allow magazines to prepare more attractive layouts.

If you want to read selected articles from the current issue, go to www.fastcompany.com.

The website also features a book club, online packages to the most popullar archives, a career center and special articles. There is a page in each issue of the magazine that talks about the latest features on the web site.

Magazine subscriptions made great Christmas gifts. I got some surprisingly appreciative comments from friends I sent it to.