It Can Be Depressing

If you listen to the media, the world is coming to an end. Jobs are being cut faster than a New York minute. Nobody can borrow money. Nobody is spending money. Taxes are going up. Stocks are falling into the basement. It's enough to make someone depressed.

While many of these things are real, we don't seem to hear about anything good. For example, oil prices are about half what they were just a few months ago. We don't seem to hear about that though, because the media has moved on to some new pariah to lynch.

Some say that the media focuses on negative stories because that is what sells newspapers and attracts viewers. I disagree. I think the media focuses on negative stories because they have a very cynical view of life. They believe that success is an aberration, and life truly consists of groveling in the muck and mire to eke out a meager living.

I think that it is important to stay informed. But that does not require reliance on the mass media. The Internet provides an abundance of news sources. (But just because it is on the Internet does not mean that it is true.)

I get my information from many sources-- the newspaper, radio, television, the Internet, and more. I do not accept what I read and hear uncritically-- I integrate it with what I know to be true, what I observe, and with my knowledge of economics, philosophy, politics, and other subjects.

Much of what we hear in the media is motivated by an agenda. Much of what we hear is only half of the story. Keep that in mind the next time the media tells you that the world is coming to an end. Not all of it is.

Making it through tough economic times requires the same business principles as making it through good economic times-- marketing, selling at the right price, cash flow management, and more. Do the right things-- in good times and in bad-- and good things will result.