Wow, there are certainly a lot of things “killing” small businesses today, don’t you think? 

The Wall Street Journal says that tariffs are “crushing” small businesses. The Center for America Progress says the same thing. The U.S. Chamber of Commerce says that tariffs are having a “real and devastating impact on thousands of small businesses across the nation.” MSNBC says that tariff uncertainty is “killing” small businesses too. A mother and daughter who started up a business in Austin say that President Trump’s tariffs are “killing” them. The New Republic says that Trump’s tariffs are “already destroying” small businesses. 

Immigration is, apparently, doing damage as well. Newsweek’s immigration reporter Billal Rahman says that, rather than tariffs, it’s actually “mass deportations” that are what’s killing small businesses.  

“In Houston, one-third of the construction workforce are undocumented immigrants,” he writes. “Deporting these workers would affect the Houston GDP by more than $50 billion over the next 10 years. The economic side effects could be significant for Texas cities that rely heavily on immigrant labor, according to business leaders.” 

Let’s not forget healthcare. A Forbes contributor says that Obamacare is killing small business.  

And that’s not all! A LinkedIn piece says its inflation that’s “killing” small business. Others think it’s Amazon. One pundit suggests it’s merely “big business thinking” that’s killing them.

And a writer at Grist believes it’s climate change that’s killing small businesses. “Even during the best of times keeping shops solvent can be a struggle,” says the author. “But when climate-driven disasters strike, the impact on mom-and-pops can be particularly devastating — and prolonged.” 

The alleged murdering of all these small business is also a local story. 

Business owners in Juno Beach, Fla., are upset about a proposed master plan that would shift land use rules to be 90 percent residential, which would, of course, “kill” small businesses there. In St. Louis, it’s icy roads. In Fairfax, Virginia and New York City, it’s socialism — and monster fences — that are killing small business. One person in Canada says it is gun laws that are killing small businesses. In the United Kingdom, the small business killer is inheritance tax. 

As if that weren’t enough, two attorneys say they think merchant cash advances are “quietly killing” small businesses.

Hey, I’m not innocent either. Back in 2019, I succumbed to my best instincts and wrote how Google’s monopoly is “killing” small businesses.

All these things — and many others — are apparently “killing” small businesses. And yet the latest Small Business Optimism index from the National Federation of Independent Businesses found that small business optimism actually improved this month and is running above the average level it’s been tracking for 52 years.  

“In August, there was a notable improvement in overall business health,” the NFIB reported. “When asked to rate the overall health of their business, 14 percent reported excellent (up 1 point), and 54 percent reported it as good (up 2 points). Twenty-seven percent reported the health of their business as fair (down 4 points), and 4 percent reported poor (unchanged).” 

The Bureau of Labor Statistics said job additions were overstated by a million last year. Meanwhile, private-sector employment increased by 54,000 jobs in August and pay was up 4.4 percent year-over-year, according to the August ADP National Employment Report produced by ADP Research.  

Paychex’s Small Business Employment Watch for the same period found that job growth among U.S. small businesses with fewer than 50 employees remained consistent, which “once again underscores the stability and resilience of the small business labor market,” said John Gibson, Paychex president and CEO. (Note that both Paychex and ADP reports are based on actual data from their customers, not surveys like the BLS does). 

PNC Bank’s latest survey of small businesses hit “record levels of optimism,” meanwhile, reporting a 23-year record-high share of business owners (84 percent) optimistic about the prospects for their own business. The semi-annual survey, which concluded Aug. 5, showed those numbers trending upward from the spring (78 percent) and last fall (76 percent).

A survey published within the past month from website provider GoDaddy found that 72 percent of their small business respondents expected their own revenues to increase or remain stable over the next six months, with 45 percent believing the broader U.S. economy will hold steady or improve in that same period. 

Finally, the MetLife and U.S. Chamber of Commerce third-quarter 2025 Small Business Index rose to a record high, even as small businesses see rising costs as a big barrier to growth, reflecting “a resilient small business community that’s cautiously optimistic about the economy.”

So where exactly is all this “killing” happening? Do we need to call the National Guard? 

There’s no question that there are many challenges for small businesses this year, including tariffs, inflation, rising healthcare costs and labor shortages. There’s no debate that things are “uncertain.” But when it comes to the economy, politics and global events, when are things ever certain?

Manufacturing activity is down, to be sure, but many of my manufacturing clients are investing for what they see as a long-term turnaround as more work comes onshore. Labor shortages are tough, but AI and other technologies are already starting to ease that pain. People in the construction and real industries are struggling, but will likely reap huge profits when mortgage rates eventually fall and pent-up housing demand is released.  

The reality is that there are 34 million small businesses in this country. Some have more challenges than others. When it storms in Oklahoma City, some businesses get “killed.” But when it’s sunny in Florida, others thrive. When prices go up because of tariffs, some businesses get “killed.” But when buyers look for alternative products, other businesses fill the need.  

Startups have been at record highs over the past five years. Entrepreneurs are everywhere. Main Street shop locations seem to be mostly rented. Online merchant platforms like Amazon and Etsy, where small businesses make up the lion’s share of their commerce, continue to report strong earnings. 

And yet people love to write about how small businesses are being “killed.” It’s the wrong word. “Challenged” may be a more appropriate term — definitely not killed. 

Gene Marks is founder of The Marks Group, a small-business consulting firm.