Recently, I was complaining to a friend that there just isn’t any good new music out there.  And I am tired of listening to the classic rock that defined my generation.  My friend replied, “oh there’s plenty of good new music, the major radio stations just aren’t playing it.”   She recommended some radio stations and internet sites I had never heard of which feature new artists of all genres.   

That’s exactly how I feel about the President’s speech on jobs last night.  Not the speech itself, but the media reactions before and after the speech.  I felt like I was listening to the same old music.  As if we aren’t all concerned enough about the state of the economy or our elected officials already, the media coverage makes sure that we stay cynical and that any glimmer of hope is shot down by their reality.

We were told the President’s proposal was dead on arrival.  We were told that Republicans were just giving lip service to working on an economic package.  We were told that this is just really about the President’s reelection.  That all anyone cared about sitting in the House chamber was politics. Speaker Boehner’s reaction was brushed aside as an insincere attempt at being conciliatory.

Says who? The four big broadcasters?  The screamers on cable?  Why can’t Congress agree on a set of initiatives to help small businesses?  Why is it impossible for the Congress to give relief on employer taxes, lift regulatory requirements and give tax breaks to small employers who hire new workers?  The Congress passed a small business jobs bill in 2010, which gave a tremendous lift to small businesses.  Who says they can’t do it again?

I know it is popular to bash everyone in power, but that’s old music.  It’s time to step up and require our politicians to work together.  It’s time to give constructive feedback to proposals.  It’s time to get serious about bipartisanship.  Our economy needs new media voices to assist us in getting serious about the economy.  Cynicism won’t fix anything.  New optimism will.  The small business organizations that I work with, work all- day every -day to advocate on behalf of their members to assist in business growth.  They don’t have time to be cynical—they are focused on results.  Entrepreneurs are by their very nature optimistic.  We see opportunity and take risks that others just don’t understand.  It is this spirit that will bring the economy back because it is based on an optimistic view of the future. 

My friend was right- there’s new and different music out there, I just wasn’t listening to the right stations.