This is a follow-up to my last post about the massive economic problems I see our country facing and how freezing the US economy to where it was a couple weeks ago might be a potential remedy.

I believe that way to get past the oncoming economic problems can be address by individuals helping individuals. Government action will not be enough to save our country from a huge recession. The trouble that we have is an economic waterfall crashing down on the the entrepeneurial engine of the USA.

Here’s the cascade:

1. Banks have loans out to companies and people for properties that they need paid on these loans.
2. Companies and people have to pay rents, payments, or mortgage on these properties.
3. Companies have to pay employees’ salaries and operating costs to pay.
4. Self employed people have to pay themselves.

The end result comes down to:

• At risk companies need capital to stay afloat (rent & payroll)
• At risk individuals need food and housing

If we can’t assist with these two items, many at risk companies will shut down, default on their rent/mortgages, and the subsequent loss of jobs will prolong the unemployment spike.

There are currently probably 50% or more of the employed who have jobs that are not immediately at risk, but if we go into a long recession, this might not be long true.

But if we can take care of our fellow workers who have lost their jobs for the next 3 month, companies at risk might be able to cover rents and basic operating costs. As a small business owner, I can see this as mostly managable for many businesses.

A few months ago, we visited a museum in England that discussed how their country pulled together during WWII. The food rationing impressed me with how each family managed with very little. And they did this for years.

Can the people of the United States all manage with less for a couple months, sharing what we have, so that whenever this problem is fixed, we all will have jobs to come back to?

You have a sphere where you have a presence, where you support the people around you. Here are some specific ideas of how you might help:

1. Send a check to your house cleaner, hair dresser, or day care provider for what they might have normally made.
2. Call a restaurant or pub that you enjoy and tell them to charge your credit card for what a meal would have cost.
3. Paypal your personal trainer or music teacher the amount they normally would have earned.
4. Offer free rent to your tenant who you know has lost their job due to this pandemic.

Each of us knows who we would have supported. Reach out and help the companies and employees with their basics: food, housing, and operating costs.

In some cases, perhaps a restaurant is delivering their meals. I guarantee they would prefer to actually make their food for you. Maybe your music teacher or personal trainer can deliver their services via skype. People want to work – it gives them a purpose – in many cases it is just not possible.

Think about how much poorer our country will be without what all these people have built around us. We can hope these companies survive or as a people, we can be moved to action now. We can share in the blessings we have, thankful that we have the resources to assist those with less. Or we can choose to sit on our assets while other people suffer.

I think about the Bible parable of the master who gave his employees large and small gifts. To those who invested their wealth and made something of it, he was pleased and rewarded them. Let’s not be the people who are so afraid of what might come that we bury our wealth. This way, when our economy restarts, we can all look in the mirror and say “Well done, good and faithful citizens.”