A Fine Line

An estimated 200,000 business closures have occurred in each of the first two years of the Covid19 pandemic. These are closures that happened because of Covid19 that would not otherwise have happened. In a typical year, absent Covid19, approximately 600,000 businesses will close their doors. But is that a distraction…

Time for a reset and the full expectation of good times ahead! Happy Holidays to everyone. I have good feelings about next year.  It’s time to make December the month to prepare for a great beginning to the New Year. Wasn’t 2021 a real kick? We could do with a…

Forty years, and then some, ages the old bean truck. It became a part of the family’s life blood when dad bought it in the 60’s to carry 1500 pound boxes of the bean harvest from our farm on Mosby Creek to the cannery in Eugene; a harvest largely accomplished…

Your favorite hobby may be the worst business idea you’ve ever had.  There are times when every businessperson gets so hung up on the product or service he/she is selling that the object of business is forgotten. I’ve been there many times. It becomes a trap.  Have you known someone…

By Greg Henderson America is a country known for overcoming extreme obstacles. In fact, it seems we seek them out just to prove we can beat them. If you’re firmly planted on our soil in work-boots and determination you may be one who refuses to use the word ‘obstacle’ instead,…

“When are you going to die?”  “Whaaaat?”  “When are you going to die?” The question was sincere and asked as though I had an answer. I stopped sweeping the garage floor to decide on an answer that wouldn’t cut the conversation too short; one that would provide a decent answer…

Have we given any serious consideration to the possibility (probability?) that a good number of our economic problems are more about poor supply chain management – and planning – than about a pandemic?  Assistant Dean for Outreach and Engagement, David Frayer at Michigan State University says about supply chain management,…

We can choose to live in the extremes, left or right, up or down, black or white. However, the world is dominated by gray, that huge expanse between the extremes. The separation occurs at a place we call a “Fine Line”. Crossing the line is a commitment to a choice,…

Fartleks make you faster. (Pronounce it just the way you think- with a smile on your face). They are also a life lesson. A one-mile race is one mile long not ten yards less. Run fast to the very end. The very end. Practices that include Fartleks help runners improve…

No plans, no planning, no training, no money, no idea what possible unintended consequences might be lying in wait. Over-optimism, no forecasting, no understanding of cashflow processes, or what to expect in the short (or long) term when decisions are made. Hope is a bad business plan. And hope is…