As a SCORE volunteer (part of the Small Business Administration), I meet a lot of wonderful people who have great ideas. Each of them is taking a step towards starting their own business. They are asking for help (by the way it’s free and available to everyone) and researching their idea. I tell them that even if this particular business doesn’t get off the ground, another one just might so keep learning, growing and exploring.
When people find out that I have started businesses or volunteer at SCORE, they inevitably talk about how much fun it must be. They don’t really think about how hard it is to start the business, find the customers, run the business and do the work. While it may sound a bit overwhelming, 20,000 new businesses start every year. I believe that if the United States is going to remain economically strong, we need more and more entrepreneurs to step up.
When I was looking for an image to include with this post, I realized that no photograph of a person or people would work. Entrepreneurs come in every size, shape, age, race, gender, religion and nationality. This is an important challenge and even if you are not inclined to start a business, I ask that you to visit, support, encourage and cheer lead for local entrepreneurs. When picking a restaurant, pick a local restaurant instead of a chain. Eat local food, buy local goods and we’ll all reap the benefits. I’d love to hear from other entrepreneurs. We need to stick together!
Michael Smigel
September 2, 2010Hi Deborah. I work in engineering by day, but I have a part-time health & wellness business by night. I’m one of those people who thinks in hypothetical terms…what if…what if I lose my job tomorrow unexpectedly? I think people are smart to diversify their incomes and if it works for them, replace their incomes. I enjoy helping others with improved health and I’m always looking for others who feel the same way and want to leverage their time & efforts. In other words, work smart, not hard.