Here's a myth: a box of baking soda keeps a refrigerator smelling fresh. Maybe that's the case for some people, like New Yorkers who eat out most of the time or families that, well, clean their refrigerator. Our house has three teenage kids and two working parents. We don't have the time to clean our refrigerator. It really smells. That's because if the food doesn't get eaten; it usually just crawls away on its own. A pallet of baking soda wouldn't make much of a difference. Read more...

In the 1970's my dad developed and sold accounting software. Frankly, it wasn't that good. Back in those days, there were no PCs. No QuickBooks. No Microsoft Office. Not even a Starbucks. Small companies did things manually and larger companies used mainframes, mostly built by IBM. Read more...

I am excellent at screwing up my business. I sell to customers who can't pay, hire people who don't work and rely on vendors who don't deliver. I purchase outdated technology, say the wrong things to the wrong people and I'm terrible at making plans. But somehow and despite my best efforts, my company continues to be profitable.Of course, we could be more profitable if I didn't keep making so many mistakes. And I certainly don't need any more help in that department. But the problem is my business, like most small businesses, is vulnerable to potential mistakes that could be made this year in Washington. Mistakes that could really screw things up. A few come immediately to mind. Read more...