NASE in the News

From the President

Keep Showing Up
Entrepreneurs are generally an optimistic group. But given enough bad news, even they can turn negative. And lately, so much of the news on the front page has been bad, really bad.

So how have successful micro-business owners responded to the credit crisis, housing mess, Wall Street turmoil and other lousy news? They keep showing up.

They open their doors every day. They call on prospective clients. They tighten their belts. They try new marketing. They do whatever it takes to keep their business going. And if that doesn’t work, they try something else.

This issue of Self-Employed will give you ideas about how to keep showing up, even when times are tough.

Start with the Economic Forecast for 2009. Knowing what to expect in the coming months could help you prepare a winning game plan for you micro-business.

Then read Don’t Get Derailed By Downtime. You’ll find 10 ways to keep your momentum going when business gets slow. Here, we’ve got a story that will show you how trade shows could boost your marketing efforts and increase your sales.

At the NASE, we’re not immune to the bad economic news. But, we’re taking our own advice: We keep showing up.

For example, in this issue’s cover article, you’ll see how the NASE fought against a tax regulation last year — and lost. But, we’re continuing to battle the measure because it’s an unfair burden to micro-businesses. And here you can read about policy issues we’ll keep on the front burner in 2009.

I’m optimistic that we’ll make headway this year on legislative issues that are critically important for the self-employed. And I’m confident that NASE Members will find ways to keep their micro-businesses profitable and successful, even in the face of bad news. We just have to keep showing up.