In 2008, the Great Financial Crisis hit. It was a difficult time, a lot of fear in the markets, a lot of economic uncertainty. People were suffering financially and emotionally. What would the future bring? What would happen next? Many companies failed. Other companies responded by laying off staff and firing people. But not Cypress. Cypress took another approach to survive the tumult. Management decided not to lay off staff but rather to cut everyone’s pay, not once, not twice, but three different times. Not one person quit, no one complained. Instead, we did what we had always done, and that was to continue to take care of our clients. After all, they were hurting too. Eventually, things got better. Conditions improved. We weathered the storm along with our clients, and the experience created a strong bond among us, both employees and clients. I was proud of the way we pulled together to help save the company.