There is so much bad news on the economy, it is hard to filter it out.

The media covers the most dramatic news. For instance, when a business lays off people, that's front page news, yet when a new business opens, whew ... rarely a mention, unless the new business pays the media for an ad. You could create your own good news.

There was some positive news in the April employment statistics. Jobs were lost in both the private (11,100) and the public (8,500) sectors in April, but self-employment increased by 16,600, partly offsetting the drop in private and public sector employment. Since September, employment among private and public sector employees has contracted by 160,900 (3.6 per cent) and 41,600 (3.2 per cent) respectively, while self-employment increased by 17,300 jobs (1.7 per cent).

You might think, "But this is a difficult time to launch a business". You're absolutely right. It is also a very difficult time to conduct a job search. Many take the safe ground and use this as an opportunity to retrain, hoping jobs will be there at the completion of their training. This is a solid strategy as long as there are jobs and the training matches actual future employment needs.

There are entrepreneurial success stories that go unreported. In the past year, through the Ontario Self-Employment Benefit program, we at Essential Communications have seen the successful launch of restaurants, renovation firms, computer support businesses, home staging firms, landscape companies, cleaning businesses and so many more. Each year we support the launch of more than 100 new businesses.

How do you create such success for yourself?

- Identify a service that is unavailable, under-served or unreliable.

- Identify a product that is not available, unreliable or poorly designed.

- Research your idea to determine if there is a real need or if this is something that you (and your close friends/family) only imagine or wish to be a need. Do some market research.

- Ask yourself: "Do I have the skills, talent and knowledge to develop this product or service?".

- Ask yourself: "Do I have the desire, the drive and passion to take on the challenge of developing a business plan and launching a business?"

Next, you need to look for support. Look close to home first. Do your friends and family support you taking on such an adventure? And then, of course, you have to look for financial support. Again look close to home. Look at your own resources. This might be: equity in your home, an unused line of credit, personal savings or that fabulous coin collection you've had in the basement all these years.

Do you have a friend or family member who might partner with you or back you in this venture? If not, develop a business plan and talk to your financial institution, Alterna Savings Credit Union or the Business Development Bank. For business plan assistance, your library, financial institution or the Business Advisory Centre Durham will have many resources; as well, check out the Interactive Business Planner at canadabusiness.ca.

If you are not currently working, and in receipt of Employment Insurance, or have been within the past three years, you may qualify for the Ontario Self-Employment Benefit program which provides more than 130 hours of business start up training, monthly coaching and a 48-week living allowance. A similar service is available to individuals with a work-limiting disability. In Durham, for more information contact Essential Communications Ltd. at 905-668-4141 (www.essentialcommunications.ca).