Archive for the ‘Money’ Category

As November is the month of Thanksgiving, we have a special opportunity to be thankful for our customers. Great customer relationships make the world go around. Customers give us the opportunity to apply our talents to serve them. Then, they transfer money from their bank accounts to ours so that we have the financial leverage to meet our goals. This simple, everyday economic interdependence is what business success and personal prosperity are all about.

Thanks to our customers for making our livelihoods and our lifestyles possible. To learn how you can strengthen customer relationships, let me invite you to read Customer Astonishment: 10 Secrets to World-Class Customer Care.

Here’s a very important question: can we reconcile the ideas of “consumerism” and frugality? The answer has to be “yes.” Consumerism makes the economic world go around as we buy the things we need and want so that others have jobs designing, manufacturing, and delivering their various products and services to us. At the same time, the historical pattern for many Americans has been over spending and over extending. Many have now decided to be more frugal. 

So, what’s the answer if we are to keep the economy humming but not overheating? It’s back to being SMART about money. If you need a bigger car for a growing family, buy a used one that is sensibly financed. If your old TV is sputtering, save up for a new, moderate-sized, flat screen TV and pay cash for it. Now it’s really your TV and not the bank’s TV.

The feature article of the latest issue of BusinessWeek magazine is entitled, “The Incredible Shrinking Boomer Economy.” The wealthiest American generation has just seen its level of wealth decline significantly. What should we do? Retreat and just let the economy shrink? It is wise that we save more. And, we can’t spend money we don’t have. However, if you’ve got some discretionary funds, then loosen your spending to purchase things of substantive value. Money may flow in new directions, but it will flow.

Invitation: Tell us how you think we can balance the need for consumerism with the importance of frugality.