1. Controlled Growth: As evidenced by the dot-com implosion, speedy growth does not ensure prolonged success. Remember Aesop's tale of the tortoise and the hare? The moral of that story was slow and steady wins the race.

It is unlikely that your freelance career will take off in a down economy. As long as you have done your market research, have a good idea and are financially prepared for long-term, slow growth, this can be the best thing for your career.

In the beginning, this will allow you to properly organize and fine tune your order processing system, return policies, marketing strategies, vendor relationships, etc.

No matter how much you have talked about and visualized how things will be handled, there is always tweaking to be done once you actually start taking on customers. The policies formalized during the start-up phase can save untold time, money and frustration later on.

One of the best pieces of business advice I ever received is to organize as if you are servicing 1,000 clients, instead of 1. After all, the procedures are the same. This way, when orders start to really roll in, you will be ahead of the game.

Important Note: If you are starting in a recessed economy, pay careful attention to sales projections. Make sure you are reaching sales goals, however modest. Otherwise, you may be closed before the economy picks up.

2. Recover from Mistakes: Freelancing is one of the hardest things you will ever do. In the beginning, you are going to make mistakes. It's not a matter of if, but when. Everybody does.

A slow economy allows you time to recover and get your bearings. Instead of moving on without examining how or why an error occurred, you can really delve into a problem, note broken procedures and implement plans to permanently rectify the situation.

Again, strong procedures and organization will be lifesavers for your freelance career down the road. An excellent book on this topic is The E-Myth by Michael Gerber. It has nothing to do with dot-coms or e-business, as the title implies.

It will show you how to put procedures in place to head off potential madness, thereby leading to more free time, less stress and increased revenues. If you want to be able to comfortably take a vacation, avoid working seven days a week and enable your freelance career to thrive into a business that will survive without your presence, read this book.

3. Learn Your Market: You've done your market research and are in tune with the needs of your client base. However, what if you: can expand upon that; are missing a key service clients demand; can form profitable relationships with complementary vendors?

Building slowly allows you time to get intimate with your customers. What types of books do they read, what type of software do they use, why are they most likely to use freelancers than full-time staffers, etc. Pry every nook and cranny of advice out of them that you can - respectfully, of course.

In a slow economy, you have the chance to not only seek this feedback, but change procedures to more adequately meet needs as well.

4. Everything is Cheaper: In a down economy, everything tends to be cheaper and more negotiable. This is particularly important for big-ticket items like retail space and large equipment. Go for long-term deals. This way, when the economy turns around, you will really reap the benefits.

Bear in mind that what goes up, must come down and vice versa. Viewed correctly, a depressed economy can be just the thing to position your business to take full advantage of more robust times.