Just in case you’ve been hiding under a rock lately there seems to be talk of something they like to call a ‘recession’.  This is a 50 cent word answer for lots of companies (particularly ones that are too ’small’ to warrant government bailouts) are going under at the speed of a morning Starbucks lineup.  If you happen to be one of those small business owners…that truly sucks.  I used to own and operate a small cafe and I know what it’s like to work your ass off 80 hours a week just to keep the lights on.  In fact it always amazed me that many of my customers (most really) who worked a ‘JOB’ (translation traded their time for another businesses money) complained if they worked more than their standard 40 hours in a week…and then worried about lay offs.

So…here begins the rant.

Success at anything requires hard work.  Either front end, back end or continuously depending on the business model you choose.  There is simply no way around the fact that effort is required to do anything worthwhile.  The reason I’m a huge believer in doing what you love is that it makes the process of hard work much easier to handle and the results are generally tons more fulfilling.  The problem is most people have the mindset that when they go to work for someone else they are somehow ‘owed’ something…generally ’security’.

I hate to break the news to you but businesses are designed to do one thing primarily: Make A Profit.  If what you do at your job adds more bottom line value to the business than they pay you in wages…you have ’security’… Unless of course the company is sucking wind everywhere else.  That’s the general problem.

When you go to work for someone else part of what you do is trade control for money.  Think about it.  You generally don’t get to pick where, when or how you work or, most times what you do in the first place.  You likely don’t have a full say on when or how long you can vacation…or whether or not your job will be ‘downsized’.  That’s just reality.

In my personal case I work for myself.  I have all the responsibility for the success and all the responsibility for the failure.  For me, and the way my mind works, that’s an ideal life.  Many people felt that I was risking my ’security’ by choosing this path.  But I have current circumstances that seem to prove that to be exactly opposite.

Back in March I began experiencing some declining health issues.  Lots of pain and no real explanation as to what was going on.  Fast forward to September to learn that I have a very rare type of cancer of the urethra.  I was looking at a particularly brutal surgery in October until my miracle health team discovered a small study in the US using radical doses of chemo and radiation with fantastic results.  I’m in week three now and responding very well   It’s without question the hardest thing I’ve ever faced BUT… That brings me back to security.

The reason I decided to work for myself is because my priority system puts the people I love at the top of the chart.  NOT what I DO…WHO I LOVE.  These same people have surrounded me with love, support and security as I walk this.  Also my business CONTINUES to support me even with the minimal hours I’m able to contribute to keep it running.  Thanks to some amazing clients and some wonderful outsourced professionals, my business will be in excellent health when I’m ready to be back full steam.

Soooo for me security is something you create for yourself, not something you ‘get’ and certainly not something you are ‘owed’.  I’m grateful I had the push to build mine while I was healthy and truly humbled by the love and support of everyone who continues to show up with support along the way.

God Bless and Get Busy

Phil Hughes