I usually send a blog about every three-to-four weeks. But this whole Covid thing has gotten me sending weekly blogs. I guess it is the rate of change that makes three-to-four weeks seem like months or years. Maybe we’re living dog years, with a seven-to-one ratio, through this. I don’t know about you, but I’m […]
PPP Loans—What a Fine Mess
Payroll Protection Program loans. What a fine mess this has become! Banks Some bankers told me the banks didn’t want to make these loans. The rate is only 1%, there are no personal guarantees, no collateral required and the banks expect high administrative costs and high default rates. For defaults and any portion of the […]
Our World on Hold, Part 3
This is my third and final installment of Our World on Hold, my take on the pandemic. In the first installment, two weeks ago, I wrote about my take on our current situation and the fallout from the government response to the pandemic. Last week, I provided my thoughts on the interim period from the […]
Our World on Hold, Part 2
This is my second of three installments related to the pandemic. I know everyone is suffering from Covid-19 News Fatigue, but I hope to provide a different take on Our World on Hold. Last week I said that I thought the loosening of the lockdowns and the return to semi-normal would take months, not weeks. […]
Our World on Hold
With Our World on Hold, it seems that most news and conversation is about the current pandemic. For business people, the questions seem to be: How long will it last? How bad will it be? When will life return to normal? I’m going to be sending out a three-part series with my views on this. […]
Book Review: Sagmeister & Walsh: Beauty
Are you tired of bad news? Me too. Let me offer you a short respite from all the doom and gloom. The topic today is beauty and, specifically, a review of a book titled, Sagmeister & Walsh: Beauty. Do a Google search on Beauty and you’ll get pages of female cosmetic products. This book isn’t […]
Well, That Escalated Quickly
Two weeks ago, I wrote in this blog that the chance of a recession being triggered by the COVID-19 as being “Probable.” This situation has changed very quickly. At this point, we are way past “Probable.” We are in the early stages of a recession. You heard it here second. The stock market, which is […]
Will COVID-19 Trigger a Recession?
The media is full of news about the COVID-19 virus, including its rapid spread and the first U.S. death occurring at Evergreen Hospital in Kirkland. Is the mainstream media hyping this more than they should? My friend, the microbiology professor at the UW School of Medicine, sent me an update from the Journal of Autoimmuity […]
Book Review: Spillover
This book was loaned to me by a friend who is a microbiologist at the UW Medical School. He marked three or four chapters for me to read but it was so interesting I read the whole thing. The subtitle is Animal Infections and the Next Human Pandemic and it serves as interesting background on […]
Ten Years a Consultant
On January 14, 2010, I officially opened my consulting practice. Today, January 14, 2020, marks ten years of working for myself. After ten years, this is longer than any W-2 job I ever had! At this point, I probably couldn’t work for anyone else! While it is challenging to have a successful practice, it is […]