In This Months Business Monthly

I’m basically an optimistic sort of fellow. Rather than dwell on the negative I tend to look for silver linings in the clouds. I don’t need press reports to tell me the economy is bad. I see that everyday in my business with firms downsizing and trying to sublease space. At the same time, I notice things that tell me our local situation isn’t as bad as it appears on the surface.

That was my theme this month in my column in The Business Monthly. Instead of fixating on local store closings and layoffs, I took notice of the positive things going on like store openings and new businesses locating in the county. Even an optimistic old dog like me was pleasantly surprised at what I found. The bottom line is, compared to the rest of the country; we have it pretty good here. Consider the fact that while Starbucks closes stores elsewhere, the stores in Howard County remain unaffected. Similarly, while Ritz Camera is shuttering more than 300 stores nationwide, the store in the Mall is one of the 400 that will remain open for business.

That is not to say that we are unaffected by the national economic downturn. We most certainly are. The point is that the impact here is much less than in other areas of the country and for that I am grateful.

You can read this month’s column here.