Dichotomies continue to reveal anxiety and surprise. East coast and west coast, big companies and small companies, fearful and hopeful, are the first pairings that come to mind as I type. But maybe this fourth one that freshly arrived can best typify two viewpoints that I've encountered as part of selling and talking about my book.

 

I love to drop in on bookstores and visit my heroes, the owners that decide to sell my books. One in particular set my books on display beside the register. Thank you! After a few days she noticed two responses: aversion and interest. Aversion was spawned from people who didn't want to think about money because their situation was too painful. Interest sprouted from people who were tired, angry or hopeful. They'd seen or felt the pain and had moved on to action.

 

Those shoppers encompass the majority of the population's attitudes. This economy and investing environment is either too ugly to look at, or a compelling reason to do something about it personally, locally, or globally.

 

Attitudes probably are balanced differently around the country (and the world too, but I'll leave that for another post.) The east coast is the home of big, old companies that are hurting terribly. They face the triple breakdown in old-style manufacturing, finance, and real estate. All of that is happening in the vicinity of the major media centers. The west coast isn't basking in glory either. California's state budget is in great pain, but in general, the west coast is benefiting from younger companies that operate newer facilities, in fresher industries, with a younger work force, and less burden from retirement entitlements and heritage inefficiencies. It is no surprise that we hear about the triple breakdown more than the areas impacted by only one or two.

 

I'd love to see the mobility demographics. Are folks that moved the west coast more likely to move again to chase opportunities, or is that still a pervasive aspect of American culture?

 

 

Change isn't easy. I admit that I'm happy to stay on my home island of Whidbey, but even then I get into town every few weeks.

 

The dichotomies of fear and hope are not separate ends of an axis. We can move from one to the other. Some folks continually live in fear. I can't recall anyone that has watched this economy and remained continually in fearless hope. But each hopeful person seems to have seen the fear, experienced it, and then used it as inspiration for a new future.

 

Big companies are almost always old. It usually takes decades to build a $100 billion company. (I say usually because Googles happen.) Old companies, big companies, have heritage, tradition, commitments, and a tendency to stick to what worked because it got them this far. I worry about such companies. The threatened ecologies, depleted resources, national debt, and redistribution of political power mean that old processes and procedures may be based on invalid assumptions. Wasteful processes aren't good for the ecological or financial environment. Reliance on diminishing resources will eventually result in higher costs and disruptions in operations.

 

On the national level, our government's debt may eventually be paid, but stimulus packages are going to increase foreign ownership of our country. The fight between Republican versus Democratic is becoming an anachronism. Foreign financial maneuvering is a greater threat than invading armies. Individuals and decentralized groups are becoming more powerful as cheap communications create new links. Sometimes that is wonderful for innovation and charities. Sometimes it is terrible because it allows destruction from the level of nuisance up to threats to national security.

 

Dichotomies point to possibilities. The media starts the broadcasts with the fear and bad news. Many will recoil, or be captured by the drama. They may be living it and may be the evidence that something must be done. But, simultaneously, at least a few are working on solutions. When I hear the bad, I look to find who is working on the good. Sometimes they are someone to help. Sometimes they are creating an investment. I'd love to see a stimulus package directed to them. Rather than feeding a fearful situation, that would feel like buying into hope.

 

Road trips and watching my own neighborhood have shown me closed businesses. Dire times without a doubt. Talking to people though reveals an underlying recovery for some. Some specialized small businesses are busier than ever. One in particular has almost doubled revenues from last year. The thing they have in common are products and services that aren’t in the established mainstream. Consumer spending is down, but not everywhere. Innovation and alternative solutions are making money.

 

I have no doubt that some publicly traded companies must be experiencing the same situation. I wonder if the news media will report on them with fervor.

 

 

In the meantime, I'll continue to give talks and blog; but more than another else, I'll continue doing what I've always done, watching the world and people for both problems and solutions. Decades from now we will have marvelous stories to tell. Now is the time to look around and see as much as possible. Appreciating the dichotomies will lay the foundation for hope, investments, and epic tales.