Okay, stick with me for a couple of minutes while I develop the background needed to make my point about small businesses.
I commute two hours every day and I couldn’t exist without my XM satellite radio. I have to admit that I spend most of my time listening to national sports talk shows, CNN and CNBC.
This morning, one of my favorite sports talk show hosts, Colin Cowherd of ESPN, went on a three minute rant about why he loves American Idol and why it is the number one rated show on television. His belief, which I totally share, is that American Idol isn’t about great singing, it’s about American Sociology. The entire show is set up to create the “opportunity” for anyone in America to become successful, to go to Hollywood, to become the next American Idol! It’s about not only having dreams but also having a “stage” where those dreams can become real.
I, like Colin, watched last night’s show where you saw all kinds of people who believe they have or really have, talent. Cowherd talked at length about a 19 year old girl from a tiny, backwards town, in a dress she paid $5 for at WalMart, get up on a stage in front of celebrity judges and television cameras and sing her heart out. She hoped that she could do well so she could leave that small town, fly on an “aeroplane” for the first time and maybe start the new life that she has always dreamed of! And when she sang fantastically and got her yellow ticket to Hollywood she broke down and wept because part of her dream had come true.
Colin Cowherd went on to describe that American Idol is really about what makes America great and completely different from countries like Canada, and Europe and other places where dreams can’t come true. “In Canada, everyone makes $36,000 a year, has free healthcare and free college” said Colin. No one falls through the cracks but no one skyrockets either; not athletes, not politicians, not entertainers, not business owners. It’s both the desperation and dreams in a country like America that creates phenomenal success stories.
Which finally brings me to my point. Google, Apple and even Zappos were once small businesses. They were founded on dreams, desperation and innovation by small business owners who had a vision for the future. But they also were lucky enough to be in a country where their dreams, with hard work, determination, passion, money and luck could become a reality.
Small business always has been the backbone of America and it will once again, if given the opportunity, lead us into more prosperous times. But there is one thing that terrifies me and could put an end to our future prosperity. Government leaders who want legislate their views, their agendas and their personal beliefs into a new America where dreams, innovation, risk and reward are no longer valued and realized.
It’s time for our government leaders to realize the importance of small business growth to America’s future by creating a “stage” where dreams can be realized!
