I have observed several parallels between running a business and running for fitness. When I run in the morning, I enjoy seeing different types of people at the track. Obviously experienced runners breeze around, passing me two and three times before they’re done. Other runners (especially newer ones like me) are slower and more measured in their stride. I also see people walking quite slowly, as if they are recovering from injury or surgery. My inclination when I first arrive is to see if I can run like the experienced runners. I think, “Maybe today will be the day …”

As I complete my pre-run stretch, I see them breeze by me. Then, I re-think my options. I can’t run with the experienced runners (yet), but the runners that are slightly faster than me are a different story. When I start out behind them, and maintain a pace slightly behind them throughout my run, I challenge myself, stretch my limits a bit and slowly increase my endurance. It’s the

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It’s just in a coma.

A big, fat, ugly coma full of nightmares and the scent of Rush Limbaugh’s cigars.  The kind that black market organ thieves look for to stock up on inventory.

Don’t despair.  You will wake up.  Just make sure you bring a different financial perspective with you when you do.

Because the world will look significantly different when you come out of it.

And if you’re already dead when that happens – because it just might take that long –let’s hope the first thing you see is someone with cute little wings and a cherubic smile as they serve you a warm, calorie-free Cinnabon.

And a completely clean financial slate. 

Heaven.  Where once again everybody gets a mortgage just by asking.

The Times They Are Still a’Changin’

Meanwhile, the past is gone.  Dead and buried.  We have to learn to live with it.  Or the memory will bury us, too.

The real nightmare resides in believing that things will go back to the way they were.  Not just for you, but for the metrics that sum it all up.

They won’t.  It was a bubble.  Which means it never was.  Pinning your hopes on the next bubble is like hoping Santa drops by for a latte in July.

If he does, he’s only there to borrow a few bucks to tide him over ‘til the Season.

Not so long ago we were looking at brochures for timeshares and second homes in places where postal workers wear shorts.  Now we’re shopping for used davenports that will fit through the cellar door at your parent’s place, because that’s where you’re living for the foreseeable future.

The real estate market, it is said, will take as long as a decade to recover.  That equity you once reflected upon and included in your mental net worth is now vaporized, along with that condo in Cabo dream.

You used to be able to touch your toes, too.  The past is the past.

The stock market?  Not much better.  Until employment stabilizes, the national debt shrinks, inflation slows, the two parties find a way to get along and Mel Gibson shuts up, your IRA is just going to sit there.

And if you’re over 50 and looking for a job?  Somewhere there is a 24-year old MBA laughing his or her ass off at your expense.

Good News/Bad News: My son is in college. 

Big time expensive school with huge name cache.  He recently told me, in lieu of committing to a field of study, that it didn’t matter what major he declared, he’ll have his pick of career paths and job offers when he graduates.

Thus far he’s majoring in beer.

No, he’s not attending the University of Denial.  It’s just that he’s been hearing that line of American Dream crap for a decade. 

It was true for the first half of it.  He, too, is living in the past.

Of course, my son won’t believe me when I tell him the economic prospects of the past are as viable as John Edwards’ presidential aspirations, so I’m hopeful that one of those esteemed professors will step forward and get real with all the kids who are forking over fifty grand a year to sit in those esteemed classrooms.

Until then, I continue to fund his meal plan.

You may be wondering where this is going, other than heading for a flush down the shaft of my pity pot.

I’ve actually got a positive message for you today.   It’s about that American Dream we used to think we shared or at least unde

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We’ve all heard about the benefits of social media marketing as a tool for engaging with customers, building your brand, and increasing your business reach.  But just how is it done?

So many brands (big and small alike) make the mistake of using social media tools such as Twitter and Facebook for simply pushing messages out but not listening to or joining in the conversations that are going on. In other words, they ignore the fundamental point of social media – being SOCIAL!

But just how do you get social? Saying you’re on Twitter or Facebook is not enough, because while it’s free and easy to build a social media presence, when it comes to growing it and seeing ROI – social media marketing is easier said than done.

Which is why SBA and Google partnered earlier this year to create a series of video “shorts” that educate local businesses about how to succeed online. Entitl

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Rising levels of identity fraud could suggest an increasing number of people may require help to manage debt worries.

New research carried out by Cifas – the fraud prevention service – has revealed “an alarming and continuing surge” in the practice throughout the UK.

The organisation monitored its 265 member bodies and discovered a 14 per cent leap in the scam compared with the same time period in 2009.

Moreover, the investigation revealed there has been a 22 per cent increase in the number of victims of impersonation.

The organisation also warned more problems relating to the matter are highly likely in the future.

More than 50,199 individuals suffered at the hands of an impersonation attempt in the first six months of the year and Cifas observed many reported feelings of vulnerability and helplessness, as well as the financial impact.

It means there are 275 instances of an individual’s personal details being abused every day.

The report found overall levels of officially recorded fraud to have dropped by three per cent from 2009 levels, but the organisation warned this only served to highlight the prevalence of the problem.

Richard Hurley, communications manager at Cifas, noted the term identity fraud is widely used in today’s society.

However, he warned: “In spite of our increased awareness and understanding of some of the steps we can take to help prevent falling victim to identity fraud … the numbers continue to rise.”

Get Safe Online recently advised holidaymakers to be wary of scams when booking their getaway online after it found 30 per cent do not check the validity of the travel provider they use before parting with their money.

Senate Clears Way for $30 Billion Small Business Fund

Posted by: John Tozzi on July 23, 2010

Washington is poised to launch its most direct attempt to revive small business lending since the financial crisis with a plan to invest up to $30 billion of federal money in small banks and give them incentives to re-lend that money to Main Street companies.

The Small Business Lending Fund, outlined by President Obama in his State of the Union speech six months ago, cleared a key Senate vote to end debate July 22 as two Republicans broke with their caucus to support the measure.

The full bill, which includes business tax breaks and enhancements to Small Business Administration loan programs, could come to a vote as soon as July 27, according to Richard Carbo, spokesman for the Senate Committee on Small Business. The House passed a version June 18.

The fund would invest in small banks—those with less than $10 billion in assets—by purchasing preferred stock, which would pay the government a dividend of 5 percent. The

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