Congress Needs To Act To Ease Credit/Lending For Challenged Commercial Markets

Jim Helsel, the Treasurer of the National Association of REALTORS® testified before a House Panel on July 29th. He stated that a strong commercial real estate sector is vital to millions of U.S. jobs and helps keep the national economy afloat. Perhaps the esteemed members will listen to testimony “from the trenches” of small business. Tax credits and assistance to hire employees are of little value if there is no capacity to retain them. Businesses need access to capital when cashflow slows to maintain or increase inventories, acquire other businesses, or for new construction. Small business vitality is what would help “prime the pump” of our economy; it needs to grow from the bottom up, not the top down. Lending institutions are relucant to lend because of the presence of “Big Brother” and restrictive regulations.

Congress has acted to help address the situaton; the Small Business Lending Act of 2010 is greatly appreciated but we need more. We are not asking for money, or tax breaks; rather small businesses need access to capital (which is not a “handout” from the government) for QUALIFIED business borrowers. Hopefully they will hear us and respond positively.

Thanks for stopping by.

May you Be Healthy, Wealthy, and WISE.

Happy Monday! How Positive Is Your Attitude?

Welcome! This is my first entry in my new Blog. Hopefully this Blog over time will pique the interest of my friends, colleagues and business associates so that you will continue to stop by to read and perhaps leave comments.

In today’s 24-hour news cycle, we are continually bombarded by information: sound bytes, financial data, news images, and plain old chit-chat from friends, family, and clients. Unfortunatley, much of what we are bombarded with is negative. Politicians complain about the other political party, economists and pundits drone on about the “worst economy in dacades”, friends/family/clients complain about one thing or another.

Yet, in the face of all this, it is important that we remain positive and upbeat. It is challenging, because we all have, or know someone who has, to overcome difficult circumstances. Brian Tracy, the Self-Help author, advises us to avoid the bombardment of negative information. We must stay positive by being positive; and surround ourselves with positive people. According to Mr. Tracy, the most powerful influence n your attitude is what you say to yourself and believe. Personally, I have found this “Self Talk” to be a great first step because it is not dependent on someone or something else; I have complete control over my thoughts and attitudes. Besides, it simply takes too much time and energy to always debate people with a negative outlook. Many people engage in physical activity to stay focused on what’s important; others attend religious services, read or do some combination of the above. I would like to close with a quote from Abraham Lincoln “Most folks are as happy as they make up their minds to be”

What works for you?

Thanks for stopping by.

May you be Healthy, Wealthy and Wise.