Sacrifice

What one thing would you like your grandchildren to know about your earlier days when you first started your business?  Those small business owners who live long enough may one day have the opportunity to personally answer that question.  What would you want your grandchildren to know?  A friend of mine, who also happens to be one of my clients, recently answered that question with one word:  "Sacrifice."

When I asked my friend what he meant, he said:  "When I graduated from school and started out on my own, my Mom told me 'You can play and pay later, or pay now and play later'.  I decided to pay now and play later."  He is now on the verge of "play later" and is actually achieving incredible things with his life.

A way of life for small business owners

How about you?  What did it cost you to get started?  I read last week that Steve Jobs sold his Volkswagen micro-bus and Steve Wozniak sold his Hewlett-Packard scientific calculator to start their new company.  Parting with their most valuable personal possessions to raise $1,300 was the beginning of a company called Apple.  You've heard stories like this before, and maybe you have your own story or you're living that story now.

Small business owners are one of the things that make America the incredible country it is - producing a product or a service for the public benefit, offering employment for others to allow them to provide for loved ones, building something that would not exist without their effort, intelligence and perseverance.  I tire of those who criticize small business owners as being "lucky" or "rich" and yet have no understanding of the long hours of sacrifice, the dark days when quitting wasn't an option, the additional time mentally working and worrying even when their bodies weren't on the job.  

Help is on the way

Like the McDonald's tag line "You deserve a break today", I believe that small business owners deserve encouragement, something that will help them achieve their goals.  Although I can't provide relief from the oppressive intrusion of our government at all levels or lift the burden of a challenging economy, I can point the way to a helping hand.

The utilization of Social Media is an opportunity that will benefit any small business, allowing it to survive long into the future, and thrive along the way.  I began exploring Social Media to encourage other Old Dogs like me to learn a few New Tricks to help their businesses and lives.  That's exactly what I'm doing with my friend who listened to his Mom's advice to "pay now and play later".  I'm helping him to continue his success and thrive with the use of Social Media.  His years of sacrifice will be rewarded by achieving his dream.  

What about you?

Thank you for sharing 137 seconds of your day,
Smitty