By MARK PENN with E. KINNEY ZALESNE
From The Wall Street Journal Microtrends Column
This is the season for traditions: chestnuts roasting on an open fire, carolers on the doorstep, and the endless argument about the secularization of Christmas. This isn’t the usual complaining about the toy and greeting card companies commercializing the holidays, but a much […]

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By MARK PENN with E. KINNEY ZALESNE
From The Wall Street Journal Microtrends Column
Unemployment has hit double digits in the U.S., and in some areas of the industrial Midwest, it is approaching 16%. Joblessness in many parts of this country is destructive beyond belief. The Federal Reserve Chairman said he sees little prospect of immediate relief.
And […]

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By MARK PENN with E. KINNEY ZALESNE
From The Wall Street Journal Microtrends Column
This is the age of the amafessional, when amateurs are rivaling professionals in opportunity, talent and the ability to produce quality work. It’s happening in virtually every field. In areas ranging from communications to medicine to simply making things with your hands, amafessionals […]

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By MARK PENN with E. KINNEY ZALESNE
From The Wall Street Journal Microtrends Column
Married, middle-class but working suburban moms whose primary concern is how to enrich their children while they are away at work are declining in numbers, in influence and even as a key swing vote.
New preliminary 2008 census figures show that the percentage of […]

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By MARK PENN with E. KINNEY ZALESNE
From The Wall Street Journal Microtrends Column
Grandparents are stepping up, and the American family may never be the same.
A few years ago, a key microtrend was the Working Retired — aging Americans who were so enjoying work and health that they either wouldn’t retire or were starting second careers […]

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By MARK PENN with E. KINNEY ZALESNE
From The Wall Street Journal Microtrends Column
I took my daughter to college this week, and as I watched her set up her off-campus apartment along with her roommates, I had to return a call. So I asked “Where’s the phone?” In response, she held up her cellphone and said, […]

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By MARK PENN with E. KINNEY ZALESNE
From The Wall Street Journal Microtrends Column
Europeans love touring churches and museums, but when it comes to vacations, Americans have always loved the great outdoors. Fishing, camping and just driving around are great American pastimes.
But now, welcome to the early stages of the era of “glamping” — glamorous camping. […]

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By MARK PENN with E. KINNEY ZALESNE
From The Wall Street Journal Microtrends Column
It’s a common lament in America that we spend too much time working for “the man.” But these days, more and more of us are the man.
According to the Census, more than 10 million Americans are self-employed, up from about 8 million in […]

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By MARK PENN with E. KINNEY ZALESNE
From The Wall Street Journal Microtrends Column
There’s always been lots of talk in this country about income inequality, but very little about lifestyle disparities, differences which are pulling American elites farther and farther away from mainstream America.
These disparities can be as profound as any class distinctions related directly to […]

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By MARK PENN with E. KINNEY ZALESNE
From The Wall Street Journal Microtrends Column
Among everybody from our leaders to our teenagers, no habit is spreading faster than being connected 24/7 via a smart phone.
Its penetration in the U.S. is estimated at 18%, and it seems that everywhere you turn, people are using their smart phones in […]

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