Why Everyone Should Start a Business or Invest in One

As Forest Whitaker’s character expressed to his son in the movie, The Great Debaters, “We do the things we have to do so we can do the things we want to do.”

If you’ve ever once thought about entrepreneurship, now is the time to make your move. If you have not thought about it, now is the time to do so.

If you’ve ever once thought about entrepreneurship, now is the time to make your move. If you have not thought about it, now is the time to do so.

People who keep saying that President Obama needs to create more jobs haven’t come to accept the fact that the global economy has changed forever. He has done what he can do in terms of policy and budget allocations to keep the economy afloat and stimulate business activity. The bottom line is we must change. We must start actively thinking about how we can be creators, innovators and contributors, not just consumers.

Every middle class person in America should start a business — or invest in their neighbor’s business — if we are once again to become a society of people who believe, with some measure of confidence, that we can achieve the American Dream.

I know what you are thinking. Felicia, did I read you correctly? Did you say, every middle class person in America should start a business or invest in their neighbor’s?

Yes, I did. This is not as outlandish as some may think. America started as a nation of small business owners. Very few people were employed by others prior to the Industrial Revolution. I know we will never return to pre-Industrial Revolution times, but there are a lot more people who should start their own businesses—and will have to start their own businesses—to survive and thrive in these economic conditions.



When it comes to business success and investing in ourselves or the success of people we know, we have to carefully reflect on the fact that we have already invested in businesses we knew nothing about through our 401ks and mutual funds. Where did that get us?

You ought to continue your investing program, but you also ought to consider some new ideas. Here’s why—salaries are not keeping up with inflation. Your job could be gone at any moment. Your investments have substantially declined in value, and it may take you up to a decade or longer to regain what you’ve lost in your investments if you only stick with the typical ways of earning and growing your money.

Instead of waiting a decade or longer for your portfolio to return to where it was, you could use the time to establish and grow a successful business that would earn more money in the long run and provide you with more cash to invest. Earning only a set amount of money from a job, passively investing in big businesses you really know nothing about, and relying on the government and your employer simply won’t cut it anymore.

I am asking you to consider a new idea: believe in yourself and your neighbor. The future, and the wealth of the economic recovery, belongs to those who have faith and believe in themselves and the ones with whom they live, work and socialize. Why do we trust people we’ve never met and probably will never meet, more than we trust our very own friends, family, neighbors, colleagues and acquaintances?

It’s our time. Believe in you.



Why Everyone Should Start a Business or Invest in One
May 19, 2011 10:30 AM
As Forest Whitaker’s character expressed to his son in the movie, The Great Debaters, “We do the things we have to do so we can do the things we want to do.”

If you’ve ever once thought about entrepreneurship, now is the time to make your move. If you have not thought about it, now is the time to do so.

People who keep saying that President Obama needs to create more jobs haven’t come to accept the fact that the global economy has changed forever. He has done what he can do in terms of policy and budget allocations to keep the economy afloat and stimulate business activity. The bottom line is we must change. We must start actively thinking about how we can be creators, innovators and contributors, not just consumers.

Every middle class person in America should start a business — or invest in their neighbor’s business — if we are once again to become a society of people who believe, with some measure of confidence, that we can achieve the American Dream.

I know what you are thinking. Felicia, did I read you correctly? Did you say, every middle class person in America should start a business or invest in their neighbor’s?

Yes, I did. This is not as outlandish as some may think. America started as a nation of small business owners. Very few people were employed by others prior to the Industrial Revolution. I know we will never return to pre-Industrial Revolution times, but there are a lot more people who should start their own businesses—and will have to start their own businesses—to survive and thrive in these economic conditions.

When it comes to business success and investing in ourselves or the success of people we know, we have to carefully reflect on the fact that we have already invested in businesses we knew nothing about through our 401ks and mutual funds. Where did that get us?

You ought to continue your investing program, but you also ought to consider some new ideas. Here’s why—salaries are not keeping up with inflation. Your job could be gone at any moment. Your investments have substantially declined in value, and it may take you up to a decade or longer to regain what you’ve lost in your investments if you only stick with the typical ways of earning and growing your money.

Instead of waiting a decade or longer for your portfolio to return to where it was, you could use the time to establish and grow a successful business that would earn more money in the long run and provide you with more cash to invest. Earning only a set amount of money from a job, passively investing in big businesses you really know nothing about, and relying on the government and your employer simply won’t cut it anymore.

I am asking you to consider a new idea: believe in yourself and your neighbor. The future, and the wealth of the economic recovery, belongs to those who have faith and believe in themselves and the ones with whom they live, work and socialize. Why do we trust people we’ve never met and probably will never meet, more than we trust our very own friends, family, neighbors, colleagues and acquaintances?

It’s our time. Believe in you.

Felicia Joy is a nationally recognized entrepreneur who created $50 million in value for the various organizations and companies she served in corporate America before launching her business enterprise. She is often called on to discuss the ins and outs of entrepreneurial success and has appeared on CNN, FOX and in other national press. Felicia operates Ms. CEO Inc., a company that helps women entrepreneurs achieve more success, faster — as well as Joy Group International, LLC, a business development and consulting firm. Send her your questions at ask@feliciajoy.biz or www.twitter.com/feliciajoy.

Article Posted by The Atlanta Post