Getting Creative in Face of Global Upheaval

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Through the support of Jewish National Fund-USA (JNF-USA), Israeli artisans and small business owners are sharing their stories and offering unique artisanal products via a new platform called Online Mitzvah Marketplace: Shop Israeli Goods. The initiative will help Israeli businesses operate outside of their traditional business model that relies on foot traffic from tourists.

This effort is the result of small businesses in Israel's north and south who face unprecedented economic hardship, local proprietors have come together to create a U.S. focused online marketplace.

Learn more here and visit then visit Online Mitzvah Marketplace: Shop Israeli Goods.

Today in Global Small Business: Staying Apart to Stay Healthy

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What's affecting me, my clients, my colleagues and other global small business owners:

• Visit The World Bank website to see what they are doing to treat – sustain economies and protect jobs – during the COVID-19 outbreak.
• Bill Gates and Mark Zuckerberg are working together to fund research for COVID-19 treatments as the pandemic continues to spread.
• Quote of the week relating to the COVID-19 outbreak: “It’s very tough to say to people, ‘Hey keep going to restaurants, go buy new houses, ignore that pile of bodies over in the corner, we want you to keep spending because there’s some politician that thinks GDP growth is what counts,’” Gates said. “It’s hard to tell people during an epidemic … that they should go about things knowing their activity is spreading this disease." – Bill Gates
• New OECD outlook on the global economy.
• A national defining moment – what historians will say about COVID-19.
• Staying apart to stay healthy during the COVID-19 crisis.

Calm Mind

©2020 Laurel J. Delaney.  All rights reserved.

"Calm mind brings inner strength and self-confidence, so that's very important for good health." – Dalai Lama

EXIM Bank Takes the Lead and Offers Maximum Financial Flexibility to Facilitate USA Exports

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The Export-Import Bank of the United States (EXIM) board of directors recently underscored its strong support for new initiatives to inject liquidity into the market and give maximum financing flexibility to facilitate sales of U.S. goods and services abroad.

They agreed to support:

• Bridge Financing Program
• Pre-Delivery/Pre-Export Financing Program
• Supply Chain Financing Guarantee Program; and
• Working Capital Guarantee Program

More detail on each initiative can be found here with links to fact sheets with additional information.

Just in by trade finance expert Ursula Wegrzynowicz, "Those exporters who started applications, but did not complete, should complete those processes asap."

Will Your Global Small Business Outlast This Crisis?

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USA Today says:

"Congress will decide whether your small business lives or dies. That’s not an exaggeration. What Congress does now, in the stimulus bill agreed on by the Senate and White House (but not yet passed by the House) to combat the coronavirus outbreak, determines whether millions of small businesses, including yours, will outlast this crisis."

Business Insider says:

"What to know about the $300 billion-plus for small businesses in the stimulus bill, and how founders will be able to apply for emergency funds."

Forbes says:

"A deal was reached in the Senate early this morning to inject approximately $2 trillion dollars into the U.S. economy, after days of negotiations and two failed votes.  The third and final economic stimulus package includes funds for direct payments to individuals and financial assistance to businesses.

The provisions for small businesses total $350 billion dollars, short of the $500 billion that Speaker Nancy Pelosi detailed in the House’s version of the stimulus package yesterday.  The bill will now move to the House for approval."

The New York Times reports:

"The largest economic stimulus measure in modern history would authorize direct payments to taxpayers and loans to small businesses, and create a $500 billion corporate bailout fund."

Deciding What's Best For Our Country

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As AP reporter Marcy Gordon in Washington, covering business, financial issues and the occasional scandal, now pandemic fallout writes, "the U.S. economy is all but shut down, and layoffs are soaring at small businesses and major industries. A devastating global recession looks inevitable. Deepening the threat, a global oil price war has erupted. Some economists foresee an economic downturn to rival the Depression."

“Right now, the country’s frozen,” said Anat Admati, a professor of finance and economics at Stanford University and senior fellow at Stanford Institute for Economic Policy Research. "Policymakers have to decide what’s really best for society."

No one knows how this recession may unfold or how effectively the government's rescue programs might help.

Read more at The New York Times.

Moving Forward with Courage by Laurel J. Delaney

©2020 Laurel J. Delaney.  All rights reserved.

Laurel Delaney's latest contribution to Thrive Global  – 11 books to help you help you face any challenge, unlock your own potential and lead your team to success during the COVID-19 outbreak.

Today in Global Small Business: The Find Happiness Edition

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What's affecting me, my clients, my colleagues and other global small business owners:

• Dwell less on stress, and focus more on positives to feel less overwhelmed during the COVID-19 outbreak.
• Countless acts of goodness, kindness, and heroism are taking place all over as the world battles COVID-19; see for yourself.
• Quote of the week: “Learn to value yourself, which means: fight for your happiness." – Ayn Rand
• How to rebalance your life in an unbalanced time.
• Take a moment with a meditation.
• Neuroscience says listening to this song reduces anxiety by up to 65 percent.
• Smile?  The results from the 2020 World Happiness Report are in.

Cherish Each Day

©2020 Laurel J. Delaney.  All rights reserved.

"The best gifts are those we not only cherish but put to use." – Les Brown

Technology is Our Savior

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As Doreen Dodgen-Magee, Psy.D. writes at Psychology Today, in many ways, technology is our savior.  She goes on to say, "It’s allowing us to stay connected and informed. For many, it’s allowing work to continue, albeit from home. While we are more than fortunate that this is the case, it’s also important to continue to be aware of the fact that, at the end of the day, we live in bodies that are impacted by huge changes in the way that we move about (or don’t) in the world."

Intentional planning goes a long way to staying mentally healthy amid the novel coronavirus crisis.

Read more about self care and COVID-19:  getting ready for the marathon.

Chill, Relax and Take a Deep Breath (Piano Music)

Good Time to Master Incoterms® 2020 Rules

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The novel coronavirus (COVID-19) presents an unprecedented situation, having immediate global impacts on communities worldwide, especially those most at risk.  With the recent recommendation from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the World Health Organization to social distance, wash your hands as often as possible, monitor your health, and stay at home, we thought this would be a good time to brush up on how to price your international transactions properly for when this outbreak clears.

For example, whenever you sell an overseas customer, you must quote them with the right terms.  As our friends over at Shipping Solutions say, "Using the wrong term could mean you are liable for transportation and other fees you hadn’t built into the price of your goods." To avoid that at all costs, download the Incoterms® 2020 Rules: Chart of Responsibilities and Transfer of Risk (requires quick signup) so you can instantly identify which fees and potential liabilities you face under each of the 11 trade terms.

Irish Prayer By the Global Small Business Blog Team

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During our challenging time right now, we offer you an Irish prayer on St. Patrick's Day:

"May God give you ...
For every storm, a rainbow,
For every tear, a smile,
For every care, a promise,
And a blessing in each trial.
For every problem life sends,
A faithful friend to share,
For every sigh, a sweet song,
And an answer for each prayer."

Today in Global Small Business: The COVID-19 Issue

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What's affecting me, my clients, my colleagues and other global small business owners:

• Tracking the number of COVID-19 cases.
• Best iPhone apps and resources for accurate COVID-19 information
• Quote of the week: “I have an increasing sense that the most important crisis of our time is spiritual and that we need places where people can grow stronger in the spirit and be able to integrate the emotional struggles in their spiritual journeys." – Henri Nouwen
• Coronavirus National Emergency Declaration Permits Employers to Offer Tax-Favored Financial Assistance to Employees
• COVID-19 Briefing
• Coronavirus resource center
• SBA to Provide Disaster Assistance Loans for Small Businesses Impacted by Coronavirus (COVID-19)

Celebrating St. Patrick's Day, Chicago Style From the Past

 

Photos courtesy:  @2020 Laurel J. Delaney.  All rights reserved.

How to Save China's Luxury Business

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Luxury brands are pinning their hopes on e-commerce to recoup some of the losses caused by China’s dismal retail environment. But will consumers switch to online in sufficient numbers to make up for the massive coronavirus shortfall?

Read more (requires a quick sign-up to access).

I Am a Believer in the People

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"I am a firm believer in the people. If given the truth, they can be depended upon to meet any national crisis. The great point is to bring them the real facts." – Abraham Lincoln

Collectively, Seattle SMEs Need a Lot More Than $5 Million to Survive During the COVID-19 Outbreak

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Small businesses operating in Amazon's neighborhood will be awarded $5 million as a fund to support their businesses around Amazon's Seattle headquarters.  The SMEs are struggling with a dramatic slowdown since the Amazon instructed its employees – 50,000 – to work from home if they could.

These businesses support tens of thousands of local jobs that are a critical part of the Seattle and Puget Sound economy,” [John] Schoettler [Amazon vice president of global real estate and facilities] said. “They’re our friends and neighbors, and we believe it’s important to try to help them confront the economic challenges that are likely to come from the COVID-19 outbreak.”

Note:  If you are operating a business near Amazon's HQ and apply for the grant, expect Amazon to ask for information including the amount of revenue each applicant expects to lose in March.

Bottom line:  Amazon wants to make the process easy so that businesses facing cash-flow problems can be stabilized quickly, the spokesman said.

Read more here.

Jittery Global Business Owners and Consumers

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Businesses from pet hotels to tour operators to smartphone repair shops and fashion brands, among others, are facing challenges tied to corporate, government and consumer response to the novel coronavirus.

While fears over the growing global coronavirus outbreak sparked widespread economic worries and wild stock market swings last week, small business owners have felt the ripple effects of canceled travel reservations, scrapped conferences, closed factories and jittery consumers.

Learn more about how global small business owners are facing and attempting to overcome hurdles caused by the naval coronavirus (COVID-19).

Today in Global Small Business: Jack Welch's Approach to Leadership

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What's affecting me, my clients, my colleagues and other global small business owners:

• How 17 upstarts are tailoring solutions to tap the $850 billion annual opportunity in addressing the unmet needs of SMBs.
• Coronavirus threatens small businesses.
• Quote of the week: “One isn't necessarily born with courage, but one is born with potential. Without courage, we cannot practice any other virtue with consistency. We can't be kind, true, merciful, generous, or honest." – Maya Angelou
• Seven key actions business can take to mitigate the effects of COVID-19.
• The late Jack Welch's approach to leadership.
• Going global: Exports hit record high in Granite State.

Lucky Enough to Be Irish

©2020 Laurel J. Delaney.  All rights reserved.

"If you are lucky enough to be Irish, you are lucky enough." – Anonymous

With the Coronavirus, Mask Options Just Aren't Available If You Are Sub-Scale

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In China, large corporations such as Apple Inc. supplier Foxconn Technology Co. have started their own mask assembly lines just to meet its workers’ needs. That option simply isn’t available if you are sub-scale.

And while bigger companies in China are largely back in operation, two-thirds of smaller ones still couldn’t get their employees to work as of last week, according to Beijing’s own government briefing.

Some say the situation could be even more dire in the U.S.  For example:

In its latest global financial-stability assessment, the International Monetary Fund found that while Chinese SMEs remain highly profitable — and large, state-owned enterprises are economic drags — the situation is just the opposite in the U.S. American SMEs are in the worst financial shape among countries in the survey, which looked at more than 1.3 million companies across major global economies. Over 60% of SME corporate debt is issued by borrowers that don’t make enough profit to cover their annual interest payments. In times of distress, it’s unclear that banks and the private-loan market will allow smaller businesses to refinance.

Read more about the state of China and determine for yourself whether they have a handle on things.

Sarah LaFleur's Clothing Line for Working Women: M.M.LaFleur (Podcast)

As Guy Ray says in his podcast, Sarah LaFleur hated getting dressed in the morning; the choices in her closet felt overwhelming, many items didn't fit right or wore out too quickly.

So in 2011 she launched a line of clothing for working women that would be simple, elegant, and well-tailored. She had no experience in fashion but partnered with a top-line designer, Miyako Nakamura, to create M.M.LaFleur.

Today it's a multi-million dollar company with loyal customers from Capitol Hill to Silicon Valley.

Listen to the 1-hour, 16-minute podcast with Guy Ray and Sarah LaFleur at NPR.

New Mexico Small Business Owners Are Exploring International Trade

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New Mexico has seen steady growth in foreign trade in recent years yet it can still be an intimidating prospect for a small business owner.

While international trade has more than doubled as a portion of the United States’ gross domestic product over the past six decades, [David] Glaccum [associate administrator for the U.S. Small Business Administration’s Office of International Trade] said many small businesses opt not to export goods and services due to a lack of expertise, as well as a level of comfort in domestic markets. 

Glaccum also indicated as few as 1% of American small businesses export goods or services to other countries, even though 95% of consumers live outside the United States.

Read more about how international trade is within reach for New Mexico small business owners.

WorldBlazer Founder Alison Larson Is Taking the Fashion World by Storm

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In the following interview conducted by Laurel Delaney for GoDaddy, Alison Larson, founder of her own global business consulting agency, WorldBlazer Consulting LLC, shares her professional and personal insights — from what triggered her interest in global business to the trick to getting and keeping global clients to the things she can’t live without (spoiler alert: one is beads for making jewelry).

Read more about how Alison Larson is taking the fashion world by storm.

Today in Global Small Business: wegg® Workshop 3/4/20 in Chicago

What's affecting me, my clients, my colleagues and other global small business owners:

• How do you go from startup to becoming a multimillion dollar business and selling more than 65 countries in less than a decade?  Find out at wegg®'s next engaging educational workshop held in Chicago on Wednesday, March 4 at 8:30AM CT and hosted by Associated Bank.  To learn more and to register, visit:  https://womenentrepreneursgrowglobal.org/2020/02/11/saving-lives-one-clinical-trial-at-a-time/
• The corona virus is seriously impacting people, businesses and the global economy.
• Quote of the week: “The greatest use of a life is to spend it on something that will outlast it.” – William James
• Lead your business through the corona virus.
• The UK's perspective on expanding abroad – pinpointing top 3 countries for expansion.
• Understanding global social entrepreneurship and its importance in our world.