By Leanne Hoagland-Smith
Post-Tribune, Merrillville, Ind.
WWR Article Summary (tl;dr) On this Labor Day, author, speaker and executive coach Leanne Hoagland sings the praises of the entrepreneur.
Post-Tribune, Merrillville, Ind.
Labor Day is an annual tribute to the contributions workers have made to the “strength, prosperity and well-being of our county,” according to U.S. Department of Labor.
Given that 70 percent of all U.S. businesses are single office/home office entrepreneurs (non-employed), I am unsure if their 40-plus hours work weeks are counted in these statistics worldwide labor productivity statistics.
Personally, I know more single office/home office entrepreneurs than small business owners with employees.
These individuals have taken personal financial risks to turn their vision into reality. From farmers to artists to marketing consultants to website designers to financial advisers to attorneys to CPAs to personal concierge services to real estate agents to keynote speakers to business writers to sales coaches, they all work long hours to market and provide viable solutions to their customers. Their efforts continue to spur our local economy forward even during times of economic uncertainty.
These individuals demonstrate 24/7 leadership that shows how they lead by leading themselves first. They get up early and go to be late. Their work weeks extend beyond the traditional 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Friday.
They can’t call in sick. Vacations are not paid time off. Paying for health insurance and retirement funding all come from their own personal sales efforts.
Our country has had a history of people who stood out for their ability to lead. President George Washington was an independent surveyor before becoming a general in the Continental Army. President Abraham Lincoln studied to be an attorney and was an unsuccessful business owner more than once.
If we look to the 19th century, we have Andrew Carnegie. His philosophy was a “rich man who dies rich, dies disgraced.”
Carnegie was a poor Scottish immigrant who became one of the wealthiest men in the U.S. He believed in self-improvement through reading. His belief allowed him to make good investments that in turn provided the foundation for his wealth. One of those investments was U.S. Steel. Many people today do not know about Carnegie’s philanthropic activities.
Locally, we have many small business leaders who started out as independent entrepreneurs. These individuals had an idea, a dream. They worked incredibly long hours. Their businesses could be what some call the “mom and pop” shops.
In some instances, these forward thinking leaders expanded their workforce from one to five to eventually over 500 employees.
Without that kind of drive, leading themselves first, these successful entrepreneurs or small business owners would not be where they are today. They are to be commended for having the vision coupled with the mindset or grit to turn their dreams into reality.
Leanne Hoagland-Smith is an author, speaker and executive coach. Her weekly column explores issues that impact the bottom line of firms with fewer than 100 employees.
