With so many small and micro business owners struggling in today's economy, we just can’t sit back and watch as business after business quietly fail.
It tears my heart out to go down the main street of my town and see empty windows where just a week earlier there had been a shop.
We can stop this. It will take a focused effort on the part of all of us as consumers to shop local. We’ve all heard it, but it’s critical now. These are our neighbors and friends whose very livelihood is at risk. If that isn’t enough reason, how about this: small business makes up 64% of the entire American economy.
Every time we buy something from a big box store, we are driving another nail into the coffin of the economy. Then we look at each other and wonder why the government doesn’t do something to fix it. It won’t be the government that pulls us out of this mess, it will be the combined efforts of each one of us.
We are committed to the idea that if everyone understood that each of us has the power to restore our economy just by shopping locally, everyone would participate. It wouldn't take much...if we simply redirect the money we spend at Walmart or Costco or Home Depot to our main street merchants, we would see the difference in the local economy very quickly.
If this mindset spread outward from us to our friends in other areas, the counties would follow suit then the state. A rising tide lifts all boats, so as each state began to flourish the nation then the world would soon be back in the black.
It seems like a big goal, but it's really just you and me changing stores, that's not so hard.
It tears my heart out to go down the main street of my town and see empty windows where just a week earlier there had been a shop.
We can stop this. It will take a focused effort on the part of all of us as consumers to shop local. We’ve all heard it, but it’s critical now. These are our neighbors and friends whose very livelihood is at risk. If that isn’t enough reason, how about this: small business makes up 64% of the entire American economy.
Every time we buy something from a big box store, we are driving another nail into the coffin of the economy. Then we look at each other and wonder why the government doesn’t do something to fix it. It won’t be the government that pulls us out of this mess, it will be the combined efforts of each one of us.
We are committed to the idea that if everyone understood that each of us has the power to restore our economy just by shopping locally, everyone would participate. It wouldn't take much...if we simply redirect the money we spend at Walmart or Costco or Home Depot to our main street merchants, we would see the difference in the local economy very quickly.
If this mindset spread outward from us to our friends in other areas, the counties would follow suit then the state. A rising tide lifts all boats, so as each state began to flourish the nation then the world would soon be back in the black.
It seems like a big goal, but it's really just you and me changing stores, that's not so hard.
Local Lending PoolsLocal lending pools are funds established for the purpose of making seed money loans to new businesses.
The funds are built up by investments from people in the community and managed by a board that reviews the applications and makes the loans. Investors are paid back with interest at the end of the loan. In the 20+ years we have been involved with this type of peer -to-peer lending, we have never seen a loan go into default. |
The 2 Comma MamaA 2 Comma Mama is a woman who is committed to building a 7-figure business from home. She works hard because she has a big WHY...a compelling reason...to make her business work. Some of our 2 Comma Mamas do it so they can care for ill relatives or a special-needs child. Others are committed to homeschooling their children or have a physical condition that makes them "unemployable". The thing they all have in common is the self-discipline and perseverance to commit to see it through.
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Credit UnionsBig banks invest the money you deposit in your accounts as they see fit. Credit unions, on the other hand, are owned by the depositors and managed by a local board. They still make loans and do what you expect a bank to do, but they do it with the community in mind.
If you want more control over how your money is used and what it supports, consider switching to a credit union in your community and put your money to work supporting your community. |