Julie Meyer, London It can start winning.

A That's the only choice for any organisation that wants to repair a damaged reputation. For instance, imagine if US policy finally managed to install a peaceful democracy in Iraq. Such a victory would no doubt change a lot of minds about America's 'brand'. We would go from incompetent, arrogant bullies to brave, persevering heroes in about the time it took to report the news.

But before we go too far down this path, let's get clear about the kind of trouble the American brand is really in. Yes, a boldly pro-American president, Nicolas Sarkozy, was recently elected in France, and the leaders of Britain and Germany are also supporters of the US. And, yes, the number of people trying to get into America has never been higher.

But the United States has undoubtedly lost respect on the world's political stage.

Leaders from countries like Venezuela and Iran, emboldened by the changing geopolitical balance of power, feel no compunction whatsoever denouncing America.

Sarkozy's opponent, Segolene Royal, made anti-American sentiment a cornerstone of her campaign, and 47% of the populace apparently thought she picked the right villain.

Even Russia, which held hands with US while it was in the process of returning to the global economy, has started treating the US government with the impudence of a teenager toward his dumb, blundering dad.

But if America's political reputation is faltering, its business reputation decidedly is not.

American companies and entrepreneurs operate around the world with unparalleled vitality and access. Europe is still the largest investor in the US, and the US is the largest foreign investor in France.

Indeed, in all of our travels over the past several years in literally dozens of countries, we have never Q A heard of a single business deal that has fallen through because one party said, "I just can't. They're American".

Maybe the simple reason is that businesspeople are mercenary. They care more about profits than politics.

It doesn't matter. The result is that business has become part of the glue that keeps the world from blowing apart. We'd never suggest that America's strong business reputation will wipe away the country's geopolitical tarnish. But we would assert that the American brand is multi-faceted . . . and thanks to that, hardly ready to be junked.

Q As part of a diversified company, when do you give up hope on a broken business?

Ron Adner, Fontainebleau, France

A Big companies hold onto failing businesses for all kinds of reasons: sentimental value, false hope and culture, to name just three.

For many decades in Japan, for example, every business was treated like a shrine . . . untouchable. Similarly, citing "tradition", Pan Am sold off its profitable hotels in the mid-1980s and kept its struggling airline business. We all know the end of that story: By 1991, Pan American World Airways fell apart. In most cases, though, inertia is what stops companies from letting go. After all, getting rid of a fixer-upper takes patience and often the willingness to take a loss. Which is why letting go of a business has to be a corporate discipline for it to happen at all.

Companies should only keep trying to fix businesses as long as they serve a strategic purpose. And they should face reality and "give up hope, " as you put it, as soon as they don't. The company buying your "failure" usually has grand plans for its resurrection. Fight your inertia, and let them go for it.

Jack and Suzy Welch are the authors of the international best-seller Winning. You can email them questions at winning@nytimes. com