The warnings are everywhere: Inflation is back. “Get used to high prices,” is the downer headline of the day on CNN. The drumbeat is the same all over.

There’s no question that current conditions are straining business as costs rise and customers start to pull back. Businesses that provide urgent or emergency services, such as septic pumpers or drain cleaners, may have it a little easier than most. But even you know you’re facing white-knuckle times right now.

And it’s not just fuel prices. The price of oil drives up the cost of almost everything else. Products from plastics to toothpaste use petroleum as an ingredient. Others get more expensive because of the cost of shipment.

It doesn’t stop there. Prices for food, starting with corn, are marching upward. Other commodities get more costly, too. Worse yet, a weak dollar is driving up the cost of goods manufactured overseas. So, what to do? There’s no magic sword to drive through the heart of the monster of rising costs. Instead, you’ll have to bring a handful of small but efficient daggers to the task. Here are five.

Redouble your cost-cutting efforts.

Smart business owners always look for ways to trim fat from their operations, even when times are good. In fact, the better you’ve focused on that job all along, the easier you can contain costs now. But whatever your past record, holding down expenses is infinitely more important when costs seem out of control.

Study the routes you send your crews on to make sure that they’re as efficient as possible. Hold off on new expenses unless you’re sure they can pay for themselves. And set up an incentive system for your employees to help you save money, such as a suggestion plan that includes concrete measures of how much a particular proposal can save, and pays a bonus to people who offer worthwhile ideas.

Pay down debt.

If you have variable interest rates on your business loans, you can expect them to start creeping up again, if they haven’t already. Pay off more of your balance while rates are still low. Better yet, refinance and get a fixed rate before the opportunities disappear.

Lock in prices from suppliers.

This requires some real precision. If you buy a lot of something and you’re certain to use up the inventory, it’s worth it to buy more in advance while prices are lower. Fuel, for instance: If you can get a long-term, fixed-price contract for gas and oil, take it. Few energy experts expect to see those costs come back down anytime soon.

There are dangers, though. First, make sure you’re reading the market correctly and that you really are locking in prices at or close to the bottom. Also make sure you will use up all that prepaid inventory in a reasonable time. And don’t let this advice overrule the principle of cutting expenses in the first place.

Pass prices on to your customers.

This strategy may be scary. If it feels like your competition is always setting prices to undercut you, you might even think that raising yours would be suicidal. The truth is that letting your discounting competitors drive you out of business trying to match them is the real suicide.

Still, you need to be strategic as you hike your prices. One way is to add targeted surcharges. One portable restroom operator instituted both a fuel surcharge and a separate disposal charge because local disposal fees had quadrupled in the last decade.

Or consider coupling a price increase with a discount for paying early. Look for little extras you can add for free as part of a service call.

The unique circumstances of your business, your market, and your customers will dictate how you explain increased fees to customers. But one thing is true everywhere: Now more than ever, you need to nurture your clients with the best possible service. You may be surprised at how many people are willing to pay a little bit more to work with someone who is knowledgeable, courteous, and willing to go the extra mile.

Expand (or don’t).

OK, that’s waffling. But there really are two schools of thought on expanding when rising prices are cramping business. One says that now’s not the time — that unless you’re really bursting at the seams with demands for your services, you should hold off on expanding, and stick to what works best already. That makes a lot of sense. After all, expansion usually means spending money and having to wait for a return. High prices may make that wait longer and more painful.

But there’s another way to look at it. If demand for your services diminishes as everything becomes more expensive, you may have no choice but to find new ways to sell yourself, even if it means branching into something you haven’t done before.

If you do need to expand in these times, the best bet is to move deliberately. Look for gambits that don’t require you to buy a lot of materials or incur a lot of new debt. Find ways to pilot new lines of business in narrow niches. Think of them as little scout ships you can abandon if they capsize, without them pulling down the mother ship. And before you expand, be brutally realistic about the demand for that great service.

“That which doesn’t kill me makes me stronger,” the bumper sticker says. And for all the macho bluster in those words, there’s a fundamental truth, too. If you stand up now and confront these tough new conditions, your business can survive. And when things eventually ease up, you can be well prepared for the better times ahead.