The Economy: a conversation with Anne Wenzel

The state of the economy these days is on everybody's mind. We've had about a year of steady, if unexciting, GDP growth but the economy still feels recessionary to most of us. Consumers still aren't spending much and companies still aren't hiring much.

Some experts are suggesting that we have entered a new era of "frugality" or even "austerity." People are paying down their debt, vowing to avoid taking on more of it, and determined to save instead of spend.

But will this new anti-consumerism outlast the recession? And what does this mean for the nation's microbusinesses?

Award-winning economist Anne Ramstetter Wenzel of Econosystems.com will be my guest and I expect a fascinating and informative conversation about what is going on in the larger economy, what competitive advantages microbusinesses might have in this climate, and how we can plan for the ways the economy seems to be changing.