TOUGH TIMES
We got eight inches of snow in the middle of the night, effectively cancelling all of my work meetings. All the more time for me to catch up on my follow-up phone calls of organizations around the country that have expressed interest in purchasing some or all of the replication manuals I've developed at work. These manuals are designed to help organizations implement and run the same kinds of programs as we do here in West Philadelphia: business incubation, training classes, youth entrepreneurship.
In talking with good-hearted people around the country, a common thread I hear is the extended period of tight budgets, and the effect that's having on social programs and on organizational morale. The non-profit world is dependent on corporate and foundation giving, and with both tied to the state of the economy and the stock market, the debacle of the last three years has meant a drier funding pool and therefore less money for programs and staff.
For many, this is causing a knee-jerk "Not interested" response to my solicitations. For others, it is a time for therapeutic venting; a kindred spirit from Philadelphia has called me, and now I can bare my soul and express my frustrations. For still others, they see my products as necessary for building greater entrepreneurial muscle in their communities, so that there is a broader base of commercial activity, rather than an unhealthy dependence on the one or two big corporations in town.
Regardless, it's been interesting to talk to people from California to Maine, from South Dakota to Texas, and everywhere in between. The business incubator industry, though small, is tight-knit; and it's an honor and a pleasure for me to know that I can help contribute to its advancement. I strongly believe that the economy will have its boom times and its bust times, but that at all times, we must do what we can to stimulate entrepreneurship, especially in our nation's most distressed urban centers.
We got eight inches of snow in the middle of the night, effectively cancelling all of my work meetings. All the more time for me to catch up on my follow-up phone calls of organizations around the country that have expressed interest in purchasing some or all of the replication manuals I've developed at work. These manuals are designed to help organizations implement and run the same kinds of programs as we do here in West Philadelphia: business incubation, training classes, youth entrepreneurship.
In talking with good-hearted people around the country, a common thread I hear is the extended period of tight budgets, and the effect that's having on social programs and on organizational morale. The non-profit world is dependent on corporate and foundation giving, and with both tied to the state of the economy and the stock market, the debacle of the last three years has meant a drier funding pool and therefore less money for programs and staff.
For many, this is causing a knee-jerk "Not interested" response to my solicitations. For others, it is a time for therapeutic venting; a kindred spirit from Philadelphia has called me, and now I can bare my soul and express my frustrations. For still others, they see my products as necessary for building greater entrepreneurial muscle in their communities, so that there is a broader base of commercial activity, rather than an unhealthy dependence on the one or two big corporations in town.
Regardless, it's been interesting to talk to people from California to Maine, from South Dakota to Texas, and everywhere in between. The business incubator industry, though small, is tight-knit; and it's an honor and a pleasure for me to know that I can help contribute to its advancement. I strongly believe that the economy will have its boom times and its bust times, but that at all times, we must do what we can to stimulate entrepreneurship, especially in our nation's most distressed urban centers.
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