As our life expectancy increases, age-related diseases are increasingly consuming more of our attention. (Last week, we discussed The High Cost of Longer Life Expectancy). Given the current trend of increasing medical cost without the subsequent improvement in patient benefits, it’s safe to predict that at this rate, spending on U.S. healthcare will, in turn, increase at a staggering rate.*
From the Trenches: Observations of the Economy
For the finale of my series on economic indicators, I’d like to share my thoughts about the economy. First, to catch you up if you haven’t been following, I started by encouraging you to create your own indicators and then, so you can put those observations into a larger context, I introduced you to the PMI and […]
Developing an Intuitive Awareness of When Economic Conditions Change
We are all at a wonderful party and by the rules of the game we know that at some point in time the Black Horsemen will burst through the great terrace doors to cut down the revelers; those who leave early may be saved, but the music and wines are so seductive that we do […]
Using The Vistage CEO Confidence Index To Track Economic Conditions
Since the global financial crisis and recession of 2007-2009, criticism of the economics profession has intensified. The failure of all but a few professional economists to forecast the episode – the aftereffects of which still linger – has led many to question whether the economics profession contributes anything significant to society. ~ Robert J. Shiller […]
Purchasing Managers Index: Macroeconomic data to track economic conditions
Be fearful when others are greedy and greedy when others are fearful. ~ Warren Buffett Ever mindful of the dangers of extrapolating personal experiences to larger trends in the economy, I take care to corroborate my own observations with macroeconomic data. So you can consider doing the same, I’m going to introduce you to a […]
Predicting Changing Economic Conditions: Set Your Own Indicators
The track record of economists in predicting events is monstrously bad. It is beyond simplification; it is like medieval medicine. ~ Nassim Nicholas Taleb In last week’s post, I mentioned economic conditions and a reader asked if I track any macroeconomic indicators to inform my business decisions. Regrettably, while there are plenty of indicators that […]
Would a Sugar Tax Have a Positive Impact on Public Health?
If all interventionist laws were really to be observed they would soon lead to absurdity. ~ Ludwig von Mises Today, I’d like to close out the thread from the past few posts regarding the sugar found in foods. A reader recently asked me how I felt about a “soda tax” in response to my post […]
Persistent Overtime: Trouble on the Horizon?
Don’t mistake activity with achievement. ~ John Wooden Last week, I highlighted one primary reason incurring persistent overtime should be avoided. To be specific, I suggested that in selecting a manufacturing company to work with, you’d be wise to exercise caution if that company persistently requires their employees to work tons of overtime. Citing the […]
Raising a Family-Friendly Business: The key to finding talent and growth
Over the last few blogs I’ve written about why businesses should be concerned if their executives, managers, or professionals (EMPs) are working many hours outside of normal working hours. For those wanting to catch up: The Unintended Consequence of Wasting Your Employees’ Time – I suggest businesses are at risk of losing valuable employees if […]
The paradox of long hours and productivity
The man who works so moderately as to be able to work constantly, not only preserves his health the longest, but in the course of the year, executes the greatest quantity of works. ~ Adam Smith On the American work ethic, and race to be the busiest, Anne-Marie Slaughter said: The culture of “time macho” […]
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