John Thomas on Freight Brokering

Economic Recovery - How Close Are You to It?

Here is an article in Forbes on America's faster recovering cities. I'll still never forget the time they were posting signs that read "Will the last person turn out the lights" in my hometown years ago. It is now benefiting from a strong recovery that surpassed even the most optimistic thoughts.

Anyway, go here to find those cities:

http://www.forbes.com/2009/11/19/cities-recovery-unemployment-lifestyle-real-estate-top-ten-chart.html?partner=yahoore

Freight Broker: Books or Training?

How do you learn to become a freight broker? The first thing I do when I want to learn how to become something is to read up on it. Grab all the free and low cost information you can. This information in itself may be enough to help a person make an informed decision on whether a particular venture is for them.

But you are probably mistaken if you think you can learn how to become something just by reading books. It might be done - but it's unlikely. Most people need training - detailed, step-by-step instruction.

Training can be simple or complex. For example, I learned how to carve a turkey from watching videos on the Internet. But freight brokering and most other business start ups require more.

The best way to learn freight brokering is to have someone "hold your hand" either working in a brokerage (more than a week or two) or having a mentor you can rely upon over the telephone and Internet.

We do have some free and low cost items if you are searching for reliable, objective information. You can find it here at: http://atexfrei.ipower.com/inanutshell.shtml

Lastly, look for a Special Offer in your email box tomorrow. It may help a little.

It's Safe and Beautiful Down Here

When some people call me and I mention I'm in El Paso, Texas, they are aware of the fact that I'm right across the river from Juarez, Mexico - the city of brutal cartel murders. And some think it's unsafe down this way - even in El Paso. Well, today I heard that El Paso is the 2nd safest city in the entire country. It's true.

I spend time in Las Cruces, New Mexico as well with my twin brother which is just 40 miles up the road from El Paso. I've got a nice photo here of the Organ Mountains. There's mystery in those mountains, they say. A lot of retirees make Las Cruces and El Paso their home. Come on down for the winter at least, if you can. It's really nice down here.

My Trusted Advisor

Jim Stack of InvesTech Research has some very positive opinions based upon his research. Years ago the only source of economic information for me was a stock broker. I didn't have time for the WSJ. And I dearly needed an "analyst", not a sales person. I'm so glad I came across Jim at a conference a couple years ago.

Jim Stack and his crew really know how to "slice and dice" things in the economy. They are research nuts in the best way. And, there are some good things happening right now according to their research. Let's take a quick look .....

Here are a couple recent trends happening right now -

    * Consumer Expectations continue to rise .....

    * CEO Confidence is following suit .....

    * The Employement Outlook is improving ..... 

    * The Economic Rebound might be stronger than we think .....

These people base their opinions on research - good, reliable research. No research is without its drawbacks. None of it is absolute gospel. But these people will tell you pretty closely what to have or not have confidence in.

In my next blog post, I'll expand a little bit more on these. Have a nice day.

The Hillside Strangler ... Have You Hit It?

Just west of downtown Chicago on I-290 there is an area where several large highways intersect. Let me tell you, for early morning rush hour and after work drive time - you can get strangled. You will just creep along coming to complete stops every 20 seconds. It is known as the Hillside Strangler. It's got to be murder on truckers primarily because the "mail" has to be delivered on time.

Now, to be honest, I have not driven there for several years and maybe things got cleared up. I was working in downtown Chicago for an architecture firm that was a spin off of another firm that was given the job of designing the area with the goal of making it more passable.

Why do I mention the Hillside Strangler?

Our Highway Trust Fund had to be bailed out twice. George Bush gave it $8 billion when he was in office. Pres. Obama gave it another $7 Billion dollar shot this year. Concerned peoples have said that money from the trust fund is being siphoned off for other uses.

Here is my personal dilemma - maybe yours too. I would dearly love to research and uncover what is really happening to our tax dollars. But I don't have the time. Maybe a poor excuse, I know.

But, did you know that the Government itself has no money. Not one red cent. Why? Because it's YOUR money and MY money. I feel helpless. Your money and my money are "up for grabs" and I feel I can't do a thing about it.

What will our highways be like ten, twenty or fifty years from now? It's downright scary.

I wish there was one good person - one good research person - who had the time and ability to research this stuff. I guess there are "watch dog" organizations out there. But I have not followed them. Maybe I should - unless someone wants to stand up and volunteer to be the Highway Trust Fund Watch Dog for us here.

Any takers?

Enjoy your weekend travel.

The Definition of Success

"The definition of success - to laugh much; to win respect of intelligent persons and the affections of children; to earn the approbation of honest critics and endure the betrayal of false friends; to appreciate beauty; to find the best in others; to give one's self; to leave the world a little better, whether by a healthy child, a garden patch, or a redeemed social condition; to have played and laughed with enthusiasm, and sung with exultation; to know even one life has breathed easier because you have lived -- this is to have succeeded." - Ralph Waldo Emerson

I'm not sure I would agree with every word as is - but the point is - not all success is wrapped up in the "almighty" dollar.

"Let the Deficits Be Damned ....."

These were the words of an economist about 70 years ago. Many years ago in college, I read how this economist, John Maynard Keynes, encouraged the government to start spending in order to stimulate the economy. People were not buying and producers were not producing. Unemployment was high.

So the government went on a spending spree, spending money they did not have. It was as if they pulled out a huge credit card with no limit on spending. Well, the economy jumped. But this was during the WWII era when America went to war.

Production was robust and unemployment dropped. Many thought John Maynard Keynes was a genius and that he actually saved capitalism.

So what does this mean with today's Stimulus spending package? Is it the answer to our current situation? I wish I knew.

I do know that China is the "company" issuing the credit card to us. China has purchased so many Treasuries bills or notes that we are indebted to China far beyond what most people realize. Most people don't realize that China has so much cash, they don't hardly know what to do with it. So, they are "loaning" it to the United States in the form of purchasing our debt. What are we going to do if China starts calling back their debt?

We do know that there is a $787 billion stimulus package and that this money comes from the Chinese in large part. Correct me if I am wrong.

If you want to track what's going on with this money, go to http://www.recovery.gov/Pages/home.aspx . You may also want to check out http://www.recovery.com/ . Sometimes reading the comments can shed more light on what's going on more so than what you can glean from the websites themselves.

I realize it's hard to understand some of this. If you know of other websites that better clarify what's going on, please respond here with a comment. Thank you.

These Things Don't Skip My Attention .....

I'm reading this morning in The Las Cruces Bulletin (Briefs) and it starts out, "Holloman Could Get F-35s". Holloman is an Air Force base just east of Las Cruces, NM. Now let me tell you - these are the new F-35 Joint Strike Fighter planes that the Air Force is buying. They are going to purchase roughly 1,700 F-35s between now and 2020.

This ain't peanuts.

Each plane costs into the millions. Some of the "older" planes have costed out between 140 to 200 million dollars - each. Each plane needs metal, plastic, rubber, nut, bolts and who knows what else.

And if you haven't thought of this - there will be a huge number of trucks needed to transport the raw materials and completed parts to and from the manufacturer and other locations.

There is just a whole lot of spending going on and, yes, the government is the biggest. It's been that way and will continue to be that way in order to keep our world turning (and protected).

To Be a Freight Broker or Not to Be a Freight Broker?

These are questions that may be plaguing you. You may have already decided, Yes, I want to become a freight broker. But you have lingering doubts or you just can't get over the indecisions and take the necessary action.

Well, guess what? You are not alone.

There should always be a certain amount of "fear of the unknown" and you don't want to get into the habit of making knee jerk reactions especially when it comes to making a big decision that will impact your entire life.

Fear no more. I may have a solution for you.

Instead of jumping in with the whole nine yards on our comprehensive training, one-on-one training with unlimited support you can get our Finding Shippers module. There is a wealth of information in this module. It will tell you about dealing with customers - how to talk to them, what they will expect from you, what you can expect from them. It will take you to various sources where there are potentially thousands and thousands of customers. It will, most importantly, show you how to search for shippers in ways that will help you go where no one else is going.

Then, if you are ready for the entire ball of wax, you can order the comprehensive, one-on-one training with unlimited support by just paying the difference. This offer only relates to the comprehensive training with unlimited support.

PLUS - GET $30 OFF if you order before Monday, November 9, 2009 at 12 noon MST.

Go here to order the Finding Shippers module: http://atexfrei.ipower.com/purchaseModuleFSS.shtml

The Affiliate Program Is Good To Go!

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One of the nice things about this Affiliate Program is that you will be provided with banners, text links, html links and more. Most of the time you will just copy and paste to use them.

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Good luck!

John