Tony Brewer

Mother always hounded me about paying attention to the funds that I invest in and making sure that they are responsible with the money. She was always concerned about helping companies that she considering bad, profiting off of pain and misery. She wouldn’t be caught dead with investments in any fund that included tobacco or drug companies.

I disagree with the drug companies, I am comfortable investing in some of them, and they do stand to make money.

There are mutual funds out there that do spend a lot of time trying to pick stocks that are more green, better for the environment and do not deal in death. I certainly recommend taking a look at these funds, and consider the costs associated with not supported the positive things in our society.

My aunt has decided to expand her business and start to recruit new people to her team. The job market where she lives has been quite depressed for a while, so she is confident that she will be able to hire people who are looking for jobs in Manassas or jobs in Gainesville.  I know that she is going to find some great new innovative ways to get the word out, and I wish her the best of luck in helping her local economy to recover.

Thanks to Lemuel Craft

Last month my boss announced to the office that we would all be getting a 10% pay cut across the board. I was already stretched to the limit financially, so I had to find a way to cut my costs. I am grateful that I still have a job, but I knew I was in trouble. I don’t make very much as it is, and every month I get deeper and deeper into credit card debt. My worst fear was that I would fall behind on bills and have to move back in with my mom and dad. I’ve been out on my own for over ten years now, so that would be a tough pill to swallow. The good thing is that cutting 10% wouldn’t be that difficult. I figured that I could do that by not eating out so many times each week and looking into my clear bundle pricing. Hopefully with these small changes I can make things work. I guess I’m just going to have to be more conscious of my spending if I don’t want to have to go back and live with mom and dad.

The process of selling and buying a business can be really complicated. I remember when my in-laws decided to sell their business and retire. It was so very hard for them to even make the decision to step down from the business – the store had been their life for almost 30 years. My my father-in-law’s health was the deciding factor. They listed it with a business broker and after 10 very long and hard months, they got an offer on the business and were able to sell it.

There are other business sales and major events, such as buying or selling a franchise or taking a new business public. I’m not sure which of the three is the toughest, but I have a feeling that going public is much more complicated because you have to deal with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

There is a professional VDR solution for IPO process that helps keep all the parties involved on track and organized. I can just imagine the nightmare of keeping the latest copies of all the reports and audits necessary for the audits, reviews and due diligence process.

As complicated as an IPO or business sale can be, imagine if the potential buyer or lender is not America. My in-laws sold their business to a middle aged couple from Mexico. The letter of intent and purchase contract had to be sent to their attorneys in Mexico City, so all the documents had to be written in both English and Spanish. Thankfully, there are places like the  Merrill Brink translation services to handle that need.

Another issue that might require a technical translation services provider would be if your company shut down it’s U.S. operations and moved to another country, like so many manufacturing companies have been doing since the NAFTA Agreement was signed. Just think of all the documents that would have to be translated to be able to staff up and begun plant operations across the border.

My boss called two nights ago and asked me to fly out to California to cover for him at a trade show.  I said OK, and packed my clothes in a hurry.  I packed my clothes in my new luggage.  I forgot that I had worn my fancy shorts the night before for about an hour, so I just threw them in the suitcase.  In one of the pockets was a brand new $14 jack knife.  I went through security and they asked me if I had any knives or anything, and I said “no, but do your thing and tear it apart.”  They tore it apart and found the jack knife.  They said “Can we get rid of this?”

I said “Can you wait a couple of minutes so my friend can come get it?”  She was only a few minutes away.  I called her on the cellphone and she said she’d be right there.  She was approximately three to four minutes away at the most.  Just before she was at the TSA checkpoint the officer turned to me and told me that I either had to go back to the beginning of the security line or throw the knife away, he wouldn’t wait for her to come.  Next time I’ll take the bus or the train if I can!  You can carry a gun (or a knife!) on a bus or a train!