The word in Dubai – Survive

I am reading a book these days in which the author talks about every city having a word. At any given time a vast majority of people living in the city are thinking about one thing, one topic, one word, and that word can be regarded as the word in that city. If your word is same as your city’s word then you fit into the city perfectly, otherwise you are a misfit.

Upon reading that I instantly started thinking about Dubai’s word. Few months ago it could have been “money”, or “glamour”, but these days it is certainly “survive”. That’s what everyone seems to be thinking about. That’s what everyone seems to be worried about. How to survive these tough times, how to make it through the credit crunch, how to make sure my job is secure enough to survive the layoffs. That’s what’s in the mind of most people living in Dubai.

The word in Dubai right now is “survive”. What’s the word in your city?