You know, it’s a job to find good things to say about an economy that is in as terrible a shape as our economy is right now. As I’ve written elsewhere, I think it’s important for you to know what’s going on. At the same time, it’s equally important not to panic and to realize that All Is Not Lost, that there is even a bit of light at the end of the tunnel.

Hence the headline for this week’s podcast.

There really are some glimmers of hope and I stand by my prediction that 2009 will be a good year for microbusinesses. Things might not pick up until later in the year for many but it’s coming. Trust me.

It’s probably very naughty of me to make fun of Congress the way I do in this week’s final story about the SBA reauthorization but, really, it’s hard to resist when they give me so much material to work with. And say what you will, I honestly do believe it is beyond stupid that our nation’s legislators can’t seem to get this done in a timely fashion.

Maybe sanity will return to Capitol Hill this year.

Alright, stop laughing. Stranger things have happened.

For more information:

SBA Office of Advocacy
Quarterly Indicators: The Economy and Small Business (PDF)
The Conference Board
Bureau of Economic Analysis
Bureau of Labor Statistics
The Small Business Economy: A Report to The President (PDF)