The latest economic indicators for the first quarter of 2010 bring some hopeful tidings, but also some significant concerns.
The U.S. unemployment rate is as high as it has been in 25 years, and there is continued concern about sizable job losses to come.
The recession has been a source of severe stress for many throughout the country.
According to the recent Multi-Sponsor Surveys’ 2009 Economic Impact Market Segmentation Study, 49% of employed adults expressed worry about potential job loss, while 32% admitted to “significant” financial troubles.
West Palm Beach Libertarian Examiner reports that Karl Dickey credits his home business for helping to alleviate much of his family’s stress and says his business has eased financial concerns while providing flexibility–qualities that can insulate a family from the changing tides of the economy.
Most people who run a business from home work only part time, so there’s freedom to plan business activities around the busy schedule of a young family.
Dickey also has another direct selling business called MonaVie and runs a franchise company. He says the direct selling business is up, while his franchising business is down.
“When I began my direct selling businesses,” says Dickey, “it was on a very part-time basis. I started just using the products and found them to be hugely beneficial. Then I noticed my business was getting weak during the recession while friends that were in the Shaklee and MonaVie businesses were excelling. Since I started, I’ve increased the amount of time I spend working with my direct selling businesses.
Using the Internet and communicating my business online makes my work much more efficient and flexible at the same time, making it possible for me to work on my business pretty much whenever I have downtime from my other responsibilities.
Plus, it was easy and inexpensive to get started, and there’s no need to make space in our home for any inventory since the company ships directly to my customers.”
Photo by emitea.