The global economy is going through a challenging time right now. Many of us are sitting around scratching our heads wondering how the heck we're going to get out of this mess. Some of us are looking to President Obama to lead us to a new way of life while others have just given up.

We're all quick to point fingers at overpaid CEOs and executives who haven't made any meaningful contributions to their companies. I've done my own finger-pointing as well.

Despite all this chaos, however, we're seeing this silver lining....

Companies are realizing that delivering excellent customer service is vitale to the success of a company. Sure, many companies still have a ways to go in improving their attitude towards customers, but overall we're seeing a shift in mindset. Companies are finally waking up to the idea that attending to customer's needs is the key to keeping or increasing their market share.

A prime example of this is Hyundai and their Hyundai Assurance Program. If a customer purchases a car from Hyundai but gets laid off, Hyundai will pay their car note for them for a year.

Hyundai figured out what car buyers' objections were - one of them being a fear of losing their jobs and not being able to make their car payment. The company came up with the program to help overcome people's fears. Now other auto companies like GM and Ford who are offering similar programs.

Then there's Russ Gerdin, a billionaire who owns Heartland Express Inc., a trucking company that continues to still do very well despite the economic downturn. Gerdin was featured in this month's Conde Naste Portfolio where he reveals his method of keeping customers: pushing his employees to do dozens of little things a tiny bit better than the competition. Besides that, Gerdin has kept a $300K yearly income for the past 20+ years. No fancy bonuses for him.

I don't know about you, but I don't look at the economy as a bad thing. This is an opportunity for companies to continue to improve their service. What do you think?