I gotta get mine!

Succeeding in business certainly requires focus, determination, persistence and hard work. Recruiting good partners is often critical as well, since last time I checked, “no man (or women) is an island”…

Having a sincere “why” you want to do something, with goals and dreams to fuel your business, is prerequisite for surviving the process. A very wealthy mentor of mine once said that he desired to be rich so he could “give it all away”. He also expressed that your goals have to be big, much bigger than yourself or your needs.

Recently I called a longtime friend and associate from college after the 2012 Presidential election. As perhaps many others, I was concerned about the effect the results might have on my business ventures, as the past four years has offered little relative to any promised “hope and change”.

To his credit, my good friend has endured his share of trials and tribulations, from family conflicts to financial difficulties. I can relate as we worked on a project during a very trying time for us both as we attempted to reinvent ourselves. His challenges were perhaps more dire than my own, as he had a family to provide for and a mortgage so far underwater it resembled the lost continent of Atlantis.

So I asked what he thought of the decision to continue down the path the re-elected President has made us walk, with more of the same and obvious “gridlock”. His answer surprised me somewhat, although it seems to be so prevalent in this day and age of “American Idleness” when it comes to  apathy and politics. Many have their heads so far in the sand they cant even comprehend where we all may land…

His comment still rings in my ears, as I find it hard to hear. For I believe “we the people” have an obligation to vote, to stay informed, to fight for freedom. If not for ourselves, or those that died for our rights, but for our children and the generations to come after us…

No remorse was expressed by this man I still consider a friend, no opinion other than his resolve to do what he has to do. I expected a dialogue about the misinterpreted polls, or what the future may behold.

Instead he indicated what is unfortunately a sign of our times; I Just gotta get mine…