With the economy weakened and uncertainty hanging in the air, many businesses are taking a defensive stance - hunkering down to weather the economic storm and hopefully emerge as the green shoots of growth dot the landscape.

According to James H. Gilmore and B. Joseph Pine II, authors of a new treatise on the economy called Economic Sense, it is exactly the wrong approach to take. The current economic problems were caused by a "failure to innovate," according to the authors, and only innovating toward offering unique experiences to their customers will help turn the economy around.

According to the authors, those starting careers in business must move away from the industrial and service economies to one that is based on time and access to customized experiences.

The Small Business Administration reports that there are approximately 27.2 million businesses in the U.S. and small businesses make up 99.7% of all firms that employ people in the country. Over the last decade, between 60 and 80% of all new jobs created were created by small business.