When the Bank of England finally decided to accept that the threat of recession was more serious than the risk of inflation and cut rates last week, there was an audible, if muted, sigh of relief in business circles.

The cut raised the prospect of reductions in borrowing costs that will be especially welcome for hard-pressed small firms if banks pass on the benefits. This, of course, cannot be taken for granted.

Whatever, it seems certain that the turbulence in the world's markets is going to result in many people either going through the demoralising experience of redundancy or having to find a new way of making a living.

This week, we highlight the experience of one man who turned his back on a successful career after 14 years to follow a path that led him to a new life as an entrepreneur.

Name: Alistair Livingstone.

Age: 54.

What is your business called? Eureka Solutions (Scotland).

Where is it based? East Kilbride, South Lanarkshire.

What does it produce, what services does it offer? We are IT business management software specialists. We take Sage products and tailor them to the needs of our clients, so they get a system that does exactly what they want it to. Too many firms are held back because they try to make their business processes fit the IT they have, rather than taking the opposite approach.

To whom does it sell? We offer our services to end-users of Sage products and also distributors of these products who do not have the IT know-how to tailor them for their clients. Our customers tend to be developing firms that are outgrowing their IT arrangements, as well as those with multiple distribution channels and product lines that are difficult to keep track of.

What is its turnover? It turned over £730,000 for the year ending April 2008. This was up 70% on the previous year.

How many employees? It has a staff of 12.

When was it formed? The business was incorporated in 1996. For the first four years I provided consultancy services on my own and the following four years saw me enter into partnership with another firm.

However, this did not work out and Eureka Solutions in its present guise began in 2004 when I broke out of the partnership.

Generally partnerships are difficult to maintain. I believe companies need to be driven towards a focused goal - committees/partnerships don't do that.

The partnership didn't have a driving force and there were two distinct sides to the business.

I was responsible for the Sage side of the business and created a business plan relating to new products/technologies happening at Sage.

The plan wasn't supported by the other partners, and I decided to return to democratic dictatorship and effectively restarted Eureka in 2004.

The partnership retained the original customer base and because of restrictive covenants I moved the business to East Kilbride. It was not a friendly break-up.

Why did you take the plunge? In 2004, the underlying IT behind the Sage mid-market suite of products changed and they became more flexible.

However, the skill-set to tailor the products did not exist in the Sage Business Partner Channel.

I like change and I like following my nose, so when I spotted this gap in the market I went for it. In any business, understanding your marketplace is vital. I have an analytical mind and continually analyse and research areas that affect my business.

What were you doing before you took the plunge? As I say, I like change and I've done many different things over the years. Prior to founding Eureka, I was working as the financial director for WW Wales, a wholesale and retail meat company.

During this time, I completed a part-time MBA at Strathclyde University, which I enrolled on after leaving my teaching post at Wellington School in Ayr.

I thoroughly enjoyed my 14-plus years in teaching and spent time in various types of school - my last post was head of maths at Wellington School.

In these 14 years I never stopped learning - continually doing any course I could - mainly computing, and became involved in the early days of computing in schools.

The next step in teaching would have taken me out of the classroom and into admin/senior management - it's strange in teaching that you could be promoted for being good at teaching and the first thing you do is less teaching.

WW Wales was well known to me - I had financed my way through university by working weekends and summers with the company from age 11 until I left university.

A chance meeting with the managing director meant me going back in and helping with their computer system and finally leaving teaching on the basis of doing the Strathclyde MBA part-time and working full time in the company.

During my six years there we grew from £1.7m to £6.5m turn-over and, boy, did I learn about business; cashflows, staff, take-overs/mergers - it was an exciting six years.

I'm often asked if I miss teaching and in some ways I do - but really, running a company and dealing with staff in a business environment is no different from teaching. It's all about being in control and getting the best out of people - making sure they grow under your guidance.

I don't have any plans for a change of career in the future, but you never know.

How did you raise the start-up funding? I raised most of the money from personal savings, personal borrowing and family. Oh, and I didn't eat quite as much as I'd have liked during that time.

What was your biggest break? Being able to get good staff has been essential to this business and without the support of my family and friends it would have been a lot more difficult to strike out on my own.

Going into business for yourself soon lets you know who your real friends are, and some of the hollow promises of help, support and business orders are still ringing in my ears.

What was your worst moment? I'm still waiting for it and it's ageing me no end. So far there have been no major disasters, although the occasional cheque bounces, which I really hate.

What do you enjoy most about running a business? I really get a buzz from watching people develop. Because we are working with new technology I have employed a lot of graduates who are up-to-date with the latest developments in the market. It is great seeing them pick up experience and watching them put their training and skills into practice.

I still find it incredible that so many university leavers with excellent, functional degrees in things like computing have to work in places like call centres when they have so much to offer our economy.

As a country we really need to make sure we utilise the talent we have instead of letting it go to waste.

What do you least enjoy? Managing people. People give you the biggest highs and the biggest lows and while I love watching staff develop I find it difficult to manage them effectively on a day-to-day basis and make sure they are always stretched, enthusiastic and motivated.

The older and indeed crabbier I get, the more I realise that everyone is different and there is no one set of rules to get the best out of people and help them realise their full potential.

Finding what drives people may be wonderful, but searching for it can be hugely frustrating. Perhaps I am just running out of patience.

What is your biggest bugbear? The bureaucracy involved in dealing with the likes of big companies and local authorities.

I understand that processes have to be in place, but it is maddening when it takes weeks to get the answer to the simplest of questions or have a mistake rectified.

This is especially frustrating when we are a small company and can react almost instantly to things.

Banks are also a pain. Once you're up and running they can't help you quickly enough, but getting a foot-up from them in the first place is a nightmare.

What are your ambitions for the firm? I want to develop a management team and structure that effectively makes me redundant. This is not because I'm hankering after a life on the beach, but because until the business can operate without my input, it doesn't have any real value.

Once it has developed a momentum of its own and doesn't need me cajoling it along on a regular basis, then I will be satisfied that it has fully established its own identity and long-term future in the market.

What are your top five priorities? To develop the business's management structure, steady the ship in these uncertain economic times, offer MBA courses to staff, build new business streams and to take a holiday. Although not necessarily in that order.

What single thing would help most? A huge confidence shot in the arm for the commercial sector. Businesses need to be confident in their ability to do the job and while the current trading environment may be more difficult, that doesn't mean firms should become paralysed by fear.

We need to stop being afraid of what might happen and focus instead on what we can make happen.

What could the Westminster and/or Scottish governments do that would most help? Put some genuine effort into helping the commercial sector develop the skills of its workforce.

Whether this comes in the form of financial incentives, training schemes or resources being made available, government could be doing a whole lot more to really squeeze the best out of everyone.

Let's stop just making do. It's such a grey, uninspiring and ultimately damaging attitude.

What was the most valuable lesson you learned? Don't believe everything people tell you - they are prone to lying.

I'm not suggesting we all become terrible cynics, but simply accepting everything at face value is a dangerous approach to take.

How do you relax? I don't understand the question.