So many things, so little time. We’re busy over here at Leader Publications and that’s because we’re working hard to provide more for you — our all-important reader.
Getting better, evaluating, re-evaluating and doing so with the ultimate goal of being the best at what you do, is what drives good business.
Of course there are so many elements involved in achieving that goal. Vision, persistence, the willingness to take a risk, the unwillingness to give up, passion, creative thinking, determination, a healthy dose of fear and an even healthier dose of chutzpah.
And when you get it right — it’s obvious.
Look at some of those businesses that are so wholly integrated into our daily lives: Starbucks, Apple … OK, those might be only wholly integrated into my life, but still, you get what I’m saying.
I love business. I love the whole idea of it. Looking at how an idea meets execution, merges with performance, lives within a solid framework and the culture itself can be one of the most exciting things to see. Flip through any Inc., Entrepreneur or Fast Company magazine and see how some people are doing everything from making our lives easier, more fun — from battling big challenges like water and food shortages in foreign countries to lack of suitable housing in small villages — all through good business.
And it takes getting things right more than once because what affects all of our respective industries keeps changing. So never rest on your laurels, I say. Look for inspiration. Look for new ideas. Look for a new way to be even better than you’ve been.
The best part about business is: It doesn’t work without you.
We’re starting a new addition of business briefs to our Monday issues so you can keep up with what’s going on with those businesses that help keep your community going.
Look for new openings, news and events, promotions and all-around general interesting things going on. We’ll do our best to keep a good running list in each edition but we can’t do it without you — our business owners and their loyal customers. So send us your news, let us know what’s going on, most importantly: Get involved. A connection to your community — well that’s just good business. E-mail jessica.sieff@leaderpub.com.
And in the interest of making good use of space, on other, unrelated note.
I make a point of writing about the events that took place here in the United States on Sept. 11, 2001 each year. Next month, we’ll mark 10 years since the day the skies would go empty and a world would stop and stare with eyes wide and hearts dark.
This year, I won’t go through the story over again about what that day means to me. Instead, I just want to point out what this 10-year anniversary should mean to all of us.
This year, we’ll see the lives of the 9-11 babies. Now, 10 years old, they are the children we recognize in our own. Big eyes, big dreams — they’re kids at the age that seems to last just about a second, that place between childhood and adolescence. This year, as we mark the anniversary of the day many of them likely lost parents and loved ones, I’d like to ask all of us to ask the question: What have we done to make this world a better place for them?
Ten years ago next month, that became the goal. From the unparalleled metropolis of the east cost to the beaches of the west, from the big city streets to the small town halls, we have a job to do. Every day we have to make this world a little better for those who are, every minute, growing up in the wake.
So take a look around at the mindless reality TV, the lack of nutrition, the political indifference, the sorry state of education. Ten years ago, we were given a charge to be an example to a new generation of children.
And it cost us four planes, two extraordinary buildings, extensive damages, congressional hearings, post-traumatic stress disorder, deteriorating health, deteriorating confidence in our government — and thousands of mothers, fathers, sons, daughters, brothers, sisters, aunts, uncles, cousins, nieces, nephews and friends.
Here’s to those 10-year-old reminders of what our job really is.