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Once Upon a Time, I Was an Entrepreneur |
Once upon a time, I was an entrepreneur—full of dreams, set on making
it big. I was a natural salesman—an outgoing, enthusiastic risk taker.
Ready to lead, ready to sacrifice, and ready to take on the world. So I
did. I learned to start and to fail, to win all and to lose all. I
loved it… and hated it. And I sacrificed my time, my finances, and… my
family. My excuse? It’s all for them. I’m running a business so I can
provide a solid financial future for my wife and kids, spend time with
them, and take away our worries.
Outsiders said, “Mike is a successful entrepreneur.” But the people closest to me, the very ones I was sacrificing for, thought differently. Why? Because they cared more about having a husband and dad than tons of cash, new cars, or 15 minutes of fame. Once upon a time, I was an entrepreneur. But now, I’m a family man entrepreneur.
A family man entrepreneur is someone who puts family first . A person that leads a legacy lifestyle, wanting every day to have success and significance. Yes...this still involves building successful businesses and 6 and 7 figure incomes, but it also involves growing a "priceless" family.
Even Sam Walton, founder of Wal-Mart and Sam’s Club, confessed on his deathbed, “I blew it.” Wow! One of the richest men in the world thinks he blew it. How is that possible? Did he miss a huge business opportunity? No—he missed a huge family opportunity. Walton barely knew his youngest son or grandchildren and had scarred relationships with his wife and other family members. On his deathbed, one of the greatest entrepreneurs of all time wasn’t thinking about professional wins, but about personal losses.
I’ve built a life and a coaching business around the four pillars of a lasting legacy: family, financial, friends, and faith. I work with entrepreneurs, and in many cases their spouses, who want to lead a legacy for their families. They have decided to make the changes right now to experience the life they desire in the present. My greatest success is to hear them say… “Even though we have come through a lot, we are a better family now, a better business, and have a plan to move forward.”
I believe leading a legacy involves more than having people at your funeral give a sappy eulogy about your contributions to the community. Every day you have the opportunity to create your legacy , your purpose for living. I coach entrepreneurs because I know from personal experience that they usually regret their personal sacrifices more than most people. For me, there is no greater sadness than seeing families left behind in the wake of a “successful” entrepreneur.
If you’re not creating the legacy you want right now, you need to change in order to have a different legacy tomorrow.
To quote Einstein: “We can’t solve problems by using the same kind of thinking we used when we created them.”
I intend to raise up an army of "family focused entrepreneurs". An army of people who want to a successful and fulfilling personal and professional life.
What legacy will you leave? Better yet...what legacy will you LEAD?
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