Jim Blasingame's Blog, page 9

Is 2016 trending as the year of our next recession?

One of the distinct markers of the United States is what has been termed our “consumer economy.”

It’s pretty intuitive.

Having a consumer economy means that the main driver of GDP (gross domestic product), and therefore, the engine of economic growth, comes from spending by consumers. Other major elements that make up the entire U.S. economy include private investment, government spending and trade.

America is not unique in this distinction, but no other major economy in the world compares to...

11 financial fundamentals every small business CEO must know

Regardless of the size of the business, ultimate responsibility for success lies with the CEO. If you’re a small business owner, that’s you. And the most critical CEO tasks that result in success or failure lie in the knowledge and practice of financial management fundamentals.

Statistics show that over half of small businesses fail within the first four years. Clearly that mortality could be significantly reduced if, before a business opened, the founder/CEO was required to pass a course...

Poll Results: Your small business performance in 2015 and expectations for 2016

The Question:
How did your business do in 2015 and what are you expecting for 2016?

31%- We had a good 2015 and it looks like 2016 will be just as good.
24% - We had a good 2015 but are less optimistic about 2016.
24%- We did not have a good 2015 but are more optimistic about 2016.
21%- We didn’t have a good 2015, and it doesn’t look like 2016 will be better.

Jim’s Comments:
For the seventh year in a row, the yeas and the nays about the economy haven’t changed that much. It’s worth noting t...

Small business owners – still crazy after all these years

“Still crazy after all these years” is the title of a contemplative, 1975 song by the legendary singer-songwriter and multiple Halls of Fame member, Paul Simon. Listening to it on the radio the other day for the zillionth time, the song’s title/refrain made me to think about what makes small business owners different.

They’re different in the way they look at the world. How they think about challenges, imagine outcomes, appraise risk, project potential, and measure all of that against their...

POLL RESULTS: New Obamacare compliance is coming for small businesses in 2016. Do you know how it applies to you?

The Question:

New Obamacare compliance is coming for small businesses in 2016. Do you know how it applies to you?

11% - I am prepared to comply with new Obamacare rules. 9% - I am not yet in compliance, but know what to do. 23% - I am not in compliance, and still don’t know what to do. 57%- My business does not have to comply with Obamacare. Jim’s Comments: Most small businesses have fewer than 50 employees, which is currently below the criteria for having to comply with O...

Jim Blasingame’s 2016 Crystal Ball Predictions

Here is the 16th edition of my New Year predictions.

·Wall Street’s digital greed, Washington’s anti-business policies and collusion between the two continue to create a moribund Main Street economic environment for small businesses.

·With a declining global economy and having exhausted financial manipulation options since 2008, capital markets will struggle in 2016.

· Main Street small businesses that are mature and established will fare well in 2016.

· Economic and regulatory pressures, plu...

Making fear a motivator, not an immobilizer

Anyone who has contemplated forsaking the perceived, if not real, security of employment to start a small business has come face-to-face with the fear of failure.

Indeed, countless would-be entrepreneurs have discontinued their self-employment pursuits for fear of losing too much—the risk being just too great.

But if you pushed through these concerns and actually became a business owner, you know that this isn’t the last time you’ll experience fear. And time will teach you that fear can actua...

Hug a Scrooge today - they need love, too

This is Jim’s traditional Christmas message.

Some say I’m a scrooge – they might be right. But here are three exhibits in my defense:

1. The early part of my career was spent in retail, which is tough on the holiday spirit. There’s a syndrome for everything else; why not one for retail survivors? Let’s call it PTHSS: Post-Traumatic Holiday Shock Syndrome.

2. Since I don’t wait until the holidays to give someone a gift, I just don’t get all worked up about holiday giving.

Not that the ladies m...

POLL RESULTS: As a citizen and business owner, what do you see as the greatest threat to you and yours right now?

The Question:

As a citizen and business owner, what do you see as the greatest threat to you and yours right now?

18% -The poor condition of the economy 7% - Climate change 18%- Expansion of radical Islamic terrorism 2%- Not enough gun control 56% - Over-taxed and over-regulated by the government
Jim’s Comments: The economy sucks for many Main Street businesses, and terrorism’s on everyone’s minds. But when we asked small business owners what was the greatest threat to...

Results of Blasingame’s 2015 Predictions and His Score

Here are my 2015 predictions and what happened. My prior 14-year record is 73% accuracy.

Prediction: Geopolitics, geo-competition and the supply/demand dynamic for crude oil won’t find equilibrium anytime soon, causing prices to fluctuate, but average less than $70 per barrel. Plus 1 - Crude averaged around $50 per barrel for the year

Prediction: With consumers buoyed by low gas prices and six years of recovery fatigue, the U.S. economy will grow, but global economic headwinds and currency in...