Join The CFIB

President Obama is meeting with business leaders to discuss how to handle the economy and the deficit. Last week, he met with Union leaders.

Just what you want. Multinationals and Unions in concert with politicians to determine what course of action to take.

It's a wrong-headed, elitist approach.

None are technically on the side of small-business. SME's share similar concerns with CEO over things like excessive regulation that burden us with red tape and high taxes from capital gains to payroll but the difference is that MNC's have powerful lobbying interests and end up putting SME's out of business.

Don't get me wrong. I understand sometimes SME's turn into MNC's because of success. I'm not hostile to it because we all want to grow and expand, what I'm concerned with is politicians going to them for advice. They're not going to speak for the rest of the economy.

I also take issue with the notion that somehow only CEO's are giant companies are true "entrepreneurs" or have opinions more valid than the little guy a profitable bakery or sports shop. They're CEO's as well.

We all know there are plenty of incompetent CEO's and companies, despite massive resources, still make fatal mistakes in the decision making process. They can write-off most of them but a small guy can't.

Big companies also have a disproportionate access to capital from banks whereas SME's are subjected to vigorous policies no matter how profitable or successful. MNC's can be losers and still get money.

Unions are a scourge upon us all so I'll leave it at that.

I'll leave politicians out of this for this post.

My point I want to make it's time for SME's to form its own lobbying alliance. I recently joined the Canadian Federation of Independent Business. It was a big step for me because I never join organizations, don't affiliate myself with any political party or sign up for anything. Most organizations are wastes of time filled with either limp, listless, leaderless people or aggressive, ambitious, alpha-males (or females) too busy looking out for #1.

Alas, the CFIB spoke my language and are well positioned to actually speak on my behalf. I learned that politicians DO take into consideration our perspective but until recently never knew what our concerns and challenges were.

When you can speak as one voice, you will be heard.

CFIB has successfully brought tax rates down to sustainable and acceptable levels for SME's over the years and are there to guard against any possible policies than can damage us.

Don't forget, SME's employ many people. Not all workers want to work for big corporations. The generally calm, intimate settings of SME's is actually healthy for people to consider as an alternative. But if we create too much of an anti-business atmosphere, ambitious minds will calculate it's not worth the risk.

We're almost there so it's time to reverse the trend a little.

It's all about changing mindsets and perceptions. In our conversation, an observation I've repeated here often was confirmed about the unique challenges in Quebec. This province lags terribly behind all other provinces when it comes to business. We're long on social projects we can't afford (assuming the "rich" will pay as well as small business), but short on innovative ideas as to how we can create a dynamic business class that can propel growth and leads us to prosperity.

Quebecers (and I've detected this in America as well)  have fallen into a mind-numbing sense that government can and will take care of society and economics. The province has a negative attitude towards private enterprise believing it to be there to gouge people. Seriously. This is the antiquated notion of entrepreneurship here. They're incapable or unwilling to acknowledge that for-profit is not incompatible with social responsibility or with having values.

There's an added layer of resistance here.

So I'm doing my part to educate.

Without coercion.