I don't know how this story ends yet

What will we learn from COVID-19?

In the Broadway musical "Hamilton," about America's founding fathers, the closing song is titled "Who Lives, Who Dies, Who Tells Your Story?"

They're discussing the financial legacy of Jefferson, of Madison, and of Alexander Hamilton, founder of America's financial system, dead of a gunshot wound in a duel. 

Let me tell you what I wish I'd known

When I was young and dreamed of glory

You have no control

Who lives, who dies, who tells your story?

What we learn from history depends on what stories we tell. Will we remember the pandemic as a failure of systems, or a triumph of them? Will it validate government regulation, or make it look silly? 

In Tuesday's Dare Capital Dialogs, Bob Zadek joined us to talk about the future of lending, and what might happen after we all get back to work. It was a fascinating conversation - we talked about how cities might change, whether some regulations may disappear - it seems silly now, for example, that doctors can only practice in the states they're licensed in. Or that hospitals in some states couldn't build new facilities without proving a need for those additional beds, which we certainly need now. 

But ultimately, we don't know how the world will react to COVID-19 - because that story hasn't been written yet. You can see its beginnings... as Bob says, look to the states, as that's where a lot of the narrative - and response - gets written. But we don't know whether, for example, we'll get another Glass-Steagall Act, as we did during the Great Depression.

Next up in Dare Capital Dialogs, we'll talk with our friend Scott Peper at Mobilization Funding about construction - and we're going to get super deep into construction financing. If you have any involvement in construction, I hope you'll join us. It's a complicated industry, but we think we have a good handle on it - and Scott has immense experience working with owners.

You can register here - as always, it's Tuesday, 1 PM CDT. 

If you got PPP funds, you should read this...

We've been talking to clients and friends who've gotten a PPP loan, and the main thing we keep hearing is "We don't know how to spend this money correctly - or track it for tax purposes and repayment." And for those who have gotten funding disbursed, it's often not enough to support operating expenses, especially if their state is still closed. 

Three things to know:

1. Get our calculator! You can use this to track and guide your PPP loan spending - just copy and paste and use it in your own spreadsheet program. 
2. PPP is a bandaid, not surgery. If you need a longer-term solution to get your business up and running, contact us. If we can't help, we probably know someone who can. You can email me at cole at darebizcapital dot com.
3. Need more help? It's just getting started, but this free open-source project is listing all possible resources for businesses in need of help, whether loans, grants, or nonprofit programs. Check it out here.

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For now, we're sending out emails once a week, on Thursdays, with any pertinent information we learn about funds available for small businesses, and of course, talking about our weekly conversations on our webinar series Dare Capital Dialogs.

I'm having a great time with these. Hope you'll join us.

Cole Harmonson is the CEO and co-founder of Dare Capital, a working capital firm based in Texas.