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There Must Be a Pony in Here Somewhere

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A Lesson in Extreme Optimism

The last few months have been nothing short of a little nuts for most people with “a little” being long forgotten. Some have lost jobs, careers, and have had to push themselves to redefine who they are, and what they stand for.

I am also in that boat. I fought for ten years to build a web design and digital marketing agency only to watch my target market forced into extinction by lockdowns over fears about a “virus” with a 99% recovery rate. One of the fundamental rules of business is “if my clients go out of business, I go out of business.”

When I am in extreme scenarios, I turn to the lessons of history to find solutions that work for me. I found this little gem when I was listening to Dr. Dolf de Roos’ Wealth Magnet CDs I bought many years ago. I don’t remember much more about those CDs but I remember this story. In searching for the story title recently, I find it attributed to my former commander-in-chief Ronald Reagan. If there ever was an optimist, Reagan would have been in that category. Donald Trump also embodies eternal optimism during extreme circumstances.

“If you’re going through Hell, keep going.”

-Sir Winston Churchill

The Story

A man and a woman fall in love, get married, and start a family. They have twin boys and they are identical in every respect. Except one. One of the boys is a pessimist. No matter how good things get, he can only see the dark side of things. The other boy is the eternal optimist. No matter how bad things get, he can only see the bright side of things.

The parents go to a psychologist to see what they can do to make the boys the same, the pessimist a little more realistic and the optimist also a little more realistic. They think that would make them both “normal.”

The psychologist has an idea. He says “Tell the boys that you have presents for each of them. Fill one room with the best toys you can buy and fill the other room with horse manure. Take the pessimist to the room filled with toys and the optimist to the room filled with horse manure. That should do the trick.”

The parents look at each other, shrug, and follow the psychologist’s recommendations.

First, they take the pessimistic boy to the room filled with toys. He opens the door and looks around and gets a sad look on his face.

The parents ask “What’s wrong? Aren’t you excited about all the toys to play with?”

The little boy replies “Yeah, that’s great but I can’t play with them. I’ll only break them.”

Then, the parents take the eternal optimist and take him to the room filled with horse manure. He opens the door and jumps in the horse manure scoping through it with his hands.

“Good Lord, what are you doing?” the baffled parents ask.

The boy smiles and replies “With all this horse manure, there must be a pony in here somewhere.”

Optimism is the Cure for a Lot of Things

The Reader’s Digest used to have a section called “Laughter is the Best Medicine.” I haven’t seen a copy of the reader’s digest in years, or even decades. But what if this is true?

Some of the more extreme military units and training arenas have the phrase “Embrace the suck.” Basically, what this means is that no matter how hard things get, no matter how tired you are, keep digging deeper to find the strength to persevere. Keep moving. It’s the only way things will get better.

If you are fighting to keep a smile on your face, remember this story. It reminds me to think about all the challenges others have overcome and those I am inspired by.

The Wolf of Wall Street on the Coronavirus Fear Mongering

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From the Wolf’s Den, Jordan Belfort Shares His Views on the Current Situation

If you’ve ever seen the movie The Wolf of Wall Street, you know the basic story of Jordan Belfort. He became a very successful stock trader in penny stocks. The system that he built is called Straight Line Persuasion and I can attest, that it is an awesome selling system. The link for Straight Line Persuasion is not an affiliate link. I have used Straight Line Persuasion and can personally attest to its effectiveness. I used it to create my largest paycheck to date of $41,000 when I was working as a recruiter for financial advisors in 2014-15. I also paid a lot more for it than it’s on sale for today! Either way, it’s worth every penny and will pay for itself.

He was so good at selling penny stocks that he build a huge trading firm. Knowingly or unknowingly, affecting the price of publicly traded stocks. I’ll ask him that when I meet him.

This video contains strong, adult language but would you expect anything less from Jordan Belfort? He hits the nail on the head in this video.

WARNING: CONTAINS ADULT LANGUAGE

Nancy Pelosi’s Reign of Terror on Small Business Continues

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Pelosi Sabotages SBA Funding in Desperate Attempt to Turn Business Owners Against Trump

The economy in the United States depends on the success of small businesses. Any elected official will tell you that at election time. Then, as soon as the victory celebrations are over, turn their back . That I get. I’m used to it after looking to the government for help over the last 30 years as an entrepreneur.

However, this time is different. The Corona virus scare is turning out to be more of a hoax than the human extinction event the media sold to the public. Local governments forced the shutdown of most small businesses except those deemed as vital. This effort pushes their agenda of “acting for the sake of the public good.” Liquor stores, abortion clinics, and marijuana dispensaries (where available) are somehow deemed necessary.

It seems that government is doing their best to create an economic depression. One would think that they would provide a solution to the mess they created. Then, they roll out the stimulus checks, the CARES Act, and the Payroll Protection Plan. The PPP is an SBA-backed loan to small businesses, independent contractors, sole proprietors, and “gig workers.” This loan was to help small businesses make their payroll. After all, we required “gig workers” to recover from the “Great Recession.”

Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi (D, San Francisco) and Sen. Chuck Schumer (D-NY) blocked additional funding for the SBA. The money would fund the Paycheck Protection Plan that will allow small businesses to continue their payroll until the temporary lockdown is over. The Democrats want additional funding for hospitals, state and local governments, food stamp recipients, according to a Washington Post article. The Washington Post will probably not elaborate on the left-wing, socialist agenda items they want funded.

Pelosi Doesn’t Support Small Business

I have a dog in this fight. My bank approved me for a loan but I have not received any funds. My situation could be a lot worse. I will survive without the funding. As an entrepreneur, I am adapting to this situation and finding other sources of revenue.

Many small businesses will not survive this shutdown which is just what the Communists want. Creating a poverty that only the government can fix. Mao Tse Tung fixed the poverty problem in China by executing over 120 million people. They do not care about you or your small business.

Pelosi Supports Communism

On September 29, 2019, the California Globe published an article titled “Nancy Pelosi’s Communist Tribute.” I’ve been calling her a communist for years because her actions. According to this article, she began praising Communism twenty years ago. In 2001, she praised Harry Bridges, an Australian Stalinist who survived two deportation attempts during World War Two as “labor leader.”

Pelosi has been a long-standing member of the Congressional Progressive Caucus , the largest caucus within the House Democratic Caucus. The CPC is the Congressional arm of the Democratic Socialists of America. Members include Bernie Sanders, Ilhan Omar, Rashida Tlaib, Jerry Nadler, Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, and Ro Khanna. You’ll find Nancy Pelosi’s name at the bottom left side as their Democratic Leader.

I think we will see Nancy Pelosi’s true allegiances come out over the next few months.

What To Do as a Small Business Owner

So, what is the small business owner supposed to do? Well, depending on what field you are in, you may have to close permanently. Hopefully, you have a corporate structure for your business. If you were forced to close by the government and you own a restaurant, or retail establishment, you are probably screwed. The Paycheck Protection Plan was designed for you to meet your payroll for two months. Your rent will still be due. Your utilities will still be due. Your taxes will still be due.

The only real solution is to develop cash flows that do not require you to open. This is an opportunity to change your business and evolve. The government is not going to bail your small business out. The only thing left to do is adapt.