It was a beautiful spring day, there was a pleasant breeze, and the sun was shining brightly. The Rivers School baseball team was playing St. Sebastian School in Needham, MA and the field was impeccably groomed. My son, Marc, was playing centerfield for Rivers. He was captain of the team, a good hitter, speedy runner and a far better than average defensive centerfielder.
One of the aspects of owning my own business that I enjoyed the most was the freedom to schedule my own time. When Marc got his baseball game schedule, I put it right into my appointment book with green ink; never to be violated. On more than one occasion I was the only parent attending one of his games.
There I was on the aforementioned bright sunny day up in the stands puffing on a fine cigar and shouting to him, “put on your sunglasses.” Not once, but repeatedly throughout the entire game. Totally oblivious, of course, I didn’t realize that I was being a complete jerk!
All the while he went about his business playing in centerfield shagging fly balls and throwing out baserunners.
Marc came to me privately and quietly after the game. He put his arm around my shoulder and said, “Dad, do you think I’m a good centerfielder?” I said, “Of course I do, Marc; you’re great.” Then he said, “Do you think I’m smart?” My reply was, “Yes, of course I do, why?”
What Marc said next taught me two valuable lessons that day. He said, “Then don’t you think I’m smart enough to know whether or not I need sunglasses when I’m in the outfield?”
All I could do was apologize, hug him, and tell him how proud I was of the way he handled me. Wow what a lesson!
I was so impressed and proud of my son, Marc, that day. He waited for just the right moment, when we were alone, to teach me about trust and delegation, and he did it with such skill and humility.
", "url": "https://smstroum.com/articles/what-my-son-taught-me-about-trust", "title": "What My Son Taught Me About Trust", "summary": "It was a beautiful spring day, there was a pleasant breeze, and the sun was shining brightly. The Rivers School baseball team was playing St. Sebastian School in Needham, MA and the field was impeccably groomed. My son, Marc, was playing centerfield for Rivers. He was captain of the team, a good hitter, speedy runner and a far better than average defensive centerfielder.
One of the aspects of owning my own business that I enjoyed the most was the freedom to schedule my own time. When Marc got his baseball game schedule, I put it right into my appointment book with green ink; never to be violated. On more than one occasion I was the only parent attending one of his games.
There I was on the aforementioned bright sunny day up in the stands puffing on a fine cigar and shouting to him, “put on your sunglasses.” Not once, but repeatedly throughout the entire game. Totally oblivious, of course, I didn’t realize that I was being a complete jerk!
All the while he went about his business playing in centerfield shagging fly balls and throwing out baserunners.
Marc came to me privately and quietly after the game. He put his arm around my shoulder and said, “Dad, do you think I’m a good centerfielder?” I said, “Of course I do, Marc; you’re great.” Then he said, “Do you think I’m smart?” My reply was, “Yes, of course I do, why?”
What Marc said next taught me two valuable lessons that day. He said, “Then don’t you think I’m smart enough to know whether or not I need sunglasses when I’m in the outfield?”
All I could do was apologize, hug him, and tell him how proud I was of the way he handled me. Wow what a lesson!
I was so impressed and proud of my son, Marc, that day. He waited for just the right moment, when we were alone, to teach me about trust and delegation, and he did it with such skill and humility.
", "date_modified": "2026-09-04T00:00:00.000Z" }, { "id": "urn:sha256:4059e1af1329108ad920e67f97cf19a792e9ae7c593f1f5b1cdd2cbcb43474ec", "content_html": "We sat down together in a cozy room on a small sofa with a fireplace in front of us and a table with a selection of teas and two massage therapists. Our “couples massage” would begin with a twenty-five minute foot massage and cup of green tea.
She began massaging my wife’s feet and asked us if we were affected by the down economy. Not expecting a question like that, I said, “Why do you ask?” She replied, “Because without folks like you who can afford to come to a resort like this and get a couples massage for several hundred dollars, I’d be out of a job.”
There I was with my wife celebrating our forty-first anniversary at a resort in Vermont getting a wonderful foot massage when I was reminded of how our economy really works. And because of me and others who are financially able; two massage therapists were employed today.
Funny, I thought, President Obama doesn’t seem to get it. He doesn’t appear to be seeing the whole picture and the interrelatedness of our economic system. Folks like my wife and me who have worked hard all of our lives are the people who can afford to spend a costly weekend at a resort employing a lot of good people.
How many of us could afford do that if Obama got his way and increased our taxes even more, I thought. Surely, an unintended consequence would be fewer visits to resorts and fewer massage therapists doing the work they love to do.
It was abundantly clear as we were later moved to two heated massage tables that these two therapists were pleased that I was financially successful. Jan, one of them said quite candidly, “without wealthy people, I’d have to find another job and I love this work.” I was thinking to myself, that’s a far cry from Obama’s pitting the poor against the rich to buy votes and redistribute income.
There I was, several hundred miles away in Vermont for a relaxing weekend being reminded about our president’s apparent lack of understanding about human nature and how our economy really works.
Generally speaking, working folks don’t resent successful or wealthy people and successful people don’t resent working folks. That seems to be the democratic mantra though. Very disturbing! And they always point to the ‘pigs’ on Wall Street as their justification.
When our massage was over, my wife and I enjoyed a glass of champagne and toasted our anniversary and wonderful good fortune. We were a couple of working class kids who started our married life together with $1,250.00 total and we’ve lived and experienced the “American Dream.”
It occurred to me that President Obama would have you believe every successful person who raises a glass of champagne in celebration of an event is taking a glass of milk from a needy person somewhere else. He would have you believe that economics is a zero-sum game where someone wealthy (a republican, naturally) got there by taking something from a worker (a democrat). Nothing could be further from the truth, just ask the massage therapists at Top Notch Resort in Stowe, Vermont.
", "url": "https://smstroum.com/articles/a-massage-with-a-message-about-our-economy", "title": "A Massage With a Message About our Economy", "summary": "We sat down together in a cozy room on a small sofa with a fireplace in front of us and a table with a selection of teas and two massage therapists. Our “couples massage” would begin with a twenty-five minute foot massage and cup of green tea.
She began massaging my wife’s feet and asked us if we were affected by the down economy. Not expecting a question like that, I said, “Why do you ask?” She replied, “Because without folks like you who can afford to come to a resort like this and get a couples massage for several hundred dollars, I’d be out of a job.”
There I was with my wife celebrating our forty-first anniversary at a resort in Vermont getting a wonderful foot massage when I was reminded of how our economy really works. And because of me and others who are financially able; two massage therapists were employed today.
Funny, I thought, President Obama doesn’t seem to get it. He doesn’t appear to be seeing the whole picture and the interrelatedness of our economic system. Folks like my wife and me who have worked hard all of our lives are the people who can afford to spend a costly weekend at a resort employing a lot of good people.
How many of us could afford do that if Obama got his way and increased our taxes even more, I thought. Surely, an unintended consequence would be fewer visits to resorts and fewer massage therapists doing the work they love to do.
It was abundantly clear as we were later moved to two heated massage tables that these two therapists were pleased that I was financially successful. Jan, one of them said quite candidly, “without wealthy people, I’d have to find another job and I love this work.” I was thinking to myself, that’s a far cry from Obama’s pitting the poor against the rich to buy votes and redistribute income.
There I was, several hundred miles away in Vermont for a relaxing weekend being reminded about our president’s apparent lack of understanding about human nature and how our economy really works.
Generally speaking, working folks don’t resent successful or wealthy people and successful people don’t resent working folks. That seems to be the democratic mantra though. Very disturbing! And they always point to the ‘pigs’ on Wall Street as their justification.
When our massage was over, my wife and I enjoyed a glass of champagne and toasted our anniversary and wonderful good fortune. We were a couple of working class kids who started our married life together with $1,250.00 total and we’ve lived and experienced the “American Dream.”
It occurred to me that President Obama would have you believe every successful person who raises a glass of champagne in celebration of an event is taking a glass of milk from a needy person somewhere else. He would have you believe that economics is a zero-sum game where someone wealthy (a republican, naturally) got there by taking something from a worker (a democrat). Nothing could be further from the truth, just ask the massage therapists at Top Notch Resort in Stowe, Vermont.
", "date_modified": "2026-09-04T00:00:00.000Z" }, { "id": "urn:sha256:1584ca1ff80ca60b40d5437f7fdaa406356de855819f6ff25f49e16808d92114", "content_html": "I opened one of my favorite books, The Forbes Scrapbook of Thoughts on the Business of Life and found three quotations from Abraham Lincoln that are apropos given the talk about socialism, communism, and government control over our lives for the - alleged - benefit of all.
“You can’t escape the responsibility of tomorrow by evading it today.”
– Abraham Lincoln
“Property is the fruit of labor; property is desirable; it is a positive good in the world. That some should be rich shows that other may become rich and, hence, is just encouragement to industry and enterprise. Let not him who is houseless pull down the house of another, but let him labor diligently and build one for himself, thus, by example, assuring that his own shall be safe from violence when built.”
– Abraham Lincoln
“The prudent, penniless beginner in the world labors for wages for a while, saves a surplus with which to buy tools or land for himself another while, and at length hires another new beginner to help him. This is the just, and generous and prosperous system which opens the way to all, give hope to all, and consequently energy, and progress, and improvement of conditions to all.”
– Abraham Lincoln
President Abraham Lincoln explained simply why free-enterprise was essential to personal freedom and to improving the quality of life for everyone. Republicans have traditionally lead more effectively on this philosophical argument… Abraham Lincoln got it!
", "url": "https://smstroum.com/articles/abraham-lincoln-got-it", "title": "Abraham Lincoln Got It", "summary": "I opened one of my favorite books, The Forbes Scrapbook of Thoughts on the Business of Life and found three quotations from Abraham Lincoln that are apropos given the talk about socialism, communism, and government control over our lives for the - alleged - benefit of all.
“You can’t escape the responsibility of tomorrow by evading it today.”
– Abraham Lincoln
“Property is the fruit of labor; property is desirable; it is a positive good in the world. That some should be rich shows that other may become rich and, hence, is just encouragement to industry and enterprise. Let not him who is houseless pull down the house of another, but let him labor diligently and build one for himself, thus, by example, assuring that his own shall be safe from violence when built.”
– Abraham Lincoln
“The prudent, penniless beginner in the world labors for wages for a while, saves a surplus with which to buy tools or land for himself another while, and at length hires another new beginner to help him. This is the just, and generous and prosperous system which opens the way to all, give hope to all, and consequently energy, and progress, and improvement of conditions to all.”
– Abraham Lincoln
President Abraham Lincoln explained simply why free-enterprise was essential to personal freedom and to improving the quality of life for everyone. Republicans have traditionally lead more effectively on this philosophical argument… Abraham Lincoln got it!
", "date_modified": "2026-08-17T00:00:00.000Z" }, { "id": "urn:sha256:c6e4dddb1baa1a60ba981ee21ffc1d34bdc85a1a9e10208fcb4845d3913d817b", "content_html": "One of the most damaging beliefs many people carry through life is the quiet conviction that they are somehow not capable enough, smart enough, confident enough, or talented enough to become successful entrepreneurs. In many cases, that belief was planted years earlier by difficult life experiences, criticism, poor educational experiences, family dysfunction, financial hardship, or years spent working in environments that slowly chipped away at their confidence and self-worth.
Over time, many people begin accepting limitation as identity. They look at successful business owners and assume those people were born different. Smarter. Better connected. More educated. More charismatic. More confident. Social media has made this perception even worse by constantly promoting polished startup founders, overnight success stories, and carefully manufactured images of entrepreneurial perfection. But much of that image is misleading.
Many successful entrepreneurs did not begin with extraordinary confidence. In fact, many began with fear, insecurity, uncertainty, and very little money. What they had was courage. Some struggled in school. Some came from difficult family situations. Some lost jobs and were forced to figure out how to survive on their own. Others spent years feeling invisible while working for people who never fully appreciated their potential.
There are certainly entrepreneurs who graduate from elite universities, attract investors, and build companies using other people’s money. They are the white-collar entrepreneurs. But there is another type of entrepreneur in America that receives far less attention: the blue-collar entrepreneur.
The blue-collar entrepreneur often starts with little capital, limited resources, and no meaningful safety net. They are not building businesses for prestige or social status. They are trying to build independence, opportunity, dignity, and control over their own lives. In many cases, failure is simply not an option because there is no Plan B waiting quietly in the background. Survival is often the motivation
That was my journey.
I started my business after losing my job. I began with only a few hundred dollars and no guarantee that things would work out. There were many moments when the pressure became overwhelming and I questioned myself and my future. Building a business exposes your insecurities very quickly. It forces you to confront fear, rejection, setbacks, uncertainty, and disappointment in ways most people never fully understand unless they have lived through it themselves.
But over time I learned something extremely important. Entrepreneurs are not usually born with confidence. They develop confidence by surviving difficult situations. They develop it by adapting, solving problems, recovering from setbacks, learning from mistakes, and continuing forward when things become difficult. The process itself changes them.
That is why I become concerned when people automatically dismiss themselves by saying, “I could never do that,” or “I’m not entrepreneurial.” In many cases, those statements are not rooted in reality. They are rooted in years of discouragement and conditioning that slowly convinced them to underestimate their own capabilities. Human beings are remarkably adaptable once they begin challenging the limitations they have accepted about themselves.
Some of the strongest entrepreneurs I have ever known once struggled with insecurity and self-doubt. They simply reached a point where they became unwilling to allow fear or other people’s opinions to determine the direction of their lives any longer.
The entrepreneurial road is filled with twists, setbacks, disappointments, pressure, and uncertainty. But it also offers something many traditional career paths do not: the opportunity to discover strengths, resilience, independence, and personal growth that might otherwise remain hidden for an entire lifetime.
Many people spend years waiting for someone else to validate their potential before they act. Unfortunately, that validation often never arrives. At some point, you must become willing to believe in possibilities for yourself before the world fully believes in them for you. If you think you cannot become an entrepreneur, you might be wrong.
", "url": "https://smstroum.com/articles/if-you-think-you-cannot-become-an-entrepreneur-you-might-be-wrong", "title": "If You Think You Cannot Become an Entrepreneur, You Might Be Wrong", "summary": "One of the most damaging beliefs many people carry through life is the quiet conviction that they are somehow not capable enough, smart enough, confident enough, or talented enough to become successful entrepreneurs. In many cases, that belief was planted years earlier by difficult life experiences, criticism, poor educational experiences, family dysfunction, financial hardship, or years spent working in environments that slowly chipped away at their confidence and self-worth.
Over time, many people begin accepting limitation as identity. They look at successful business owners and assume those people were born different. Smarter. Better connected. More educated. More charismatic. More confident. Social media has made this perception even worse by constantly promoting polished startup founders, overnight success stories, and carefully manufactured images of entrepreneurial perfection. But much of that image is misleading.
Many successful entrepreneurs did not begin with extraordinary confidence. In fact, many began with fear, insecurity, uncertainty, and very little money. What they had was courage. Some struggled in school. Some came from difficult family situations. Some lost jobs and were forced to figure out how to survive on their own. Others spent years feeling invisible while working for people who never fully appreciated their potential.
There are certainly entrepreneurs who graduate from elite universities, attract investors, and build companies using other people’s money. They are the white-collar entrepreneurs. But there is another type of entrepreneur in America that receives far less attention: the blue-collar entrepreneur.
The blue-collar entrepreneur often starts with little capital, limited resources, and no meaningful safety net. They are not building businesses for prestige or social status. They are trying to build independence, opportunity, dignity, and control over their own lives. In many cases, failure is simply not an option because there is no Plan B waiting quietly in the background. Survival is often the motivation
That was my journey.
I started my business after losing my job. I began with only a few hundred dollars and no guarantee that things would work out. There were many moments when the pressure became overwhelming and I questioned myself and my future. Building a business exposes your insecurities very quickly. It forces you to confront fear, rejection, setbacks, uncertainty, and disappointment in ways most people never fully understand unless they have lived through it themselves.
But over time I learned something extremely important. Entrepreneurs are not usually born with confidence. They develop confidence by surviving difficult situations. They develop it by adapting, solving problems, recovering from setbacks, learning from mistakes, and continuing forward when things become difficult. The process itself changes them.
That is why I become concerned when people automatically dismiss themselves by saying, “I could never do that,” or “I’m not entrepreneurial.” In many cases, those statements are not rooted in reality. They are rooted in years of discouragement and conditioning that slowly convinced them to underestimate their own capabilities. Human beings are remarkably adaptable once they begin challenging the limitations they have accepted about themselves.
Some of the strongest entrepreneurs I have ever known once struggled with insecurity and self-doubt. They simply reached a point where they became unwilling to allow fear or other people’s opinions to determine the direction of their lives any longer.
The entrepreneurial road is filled with twists, setbacks, disappointments, pressure, and uncertainty. But it also offers something many traditional career paths do not: the opportunity to discover strengths, resilience, independence, and personal growth that might otherwise remain hidden for an entire lifetime.
Many people spend years waiting for someone else to validate their potential before they act. Unfortunately, that validation often never arrives. At some point, you must become willing to believe in possibilities for yourself before the world fully believes in them for you. If you think you cannot become an entrepreneur, you might be wrong.
", "date_modified": "2026-08-03T00:00:00.000Z" }, { "id": "urn:sha256:2e7244db63e2cc967f2556c10f261907431c06f31b3ac8c3cdd6256f0b627b94", "content_html": "In marketing today, “Search” gets a lot of attention. And it should. However, there is a huge implicit assumption which is: your prospective customer knows what they need and then search for it. Henry Ford famously said, “If I had asked people what they wanted, they would have said faster horses.”
In other words, without a problem-solving message from Ford Motor Company, prospective customers wouldn’t have realized that an automobile was introduced that provided a better solution to the “problem of slow horses.”
So, when it comes to web search, don’t assume your customers know what they want! Steve Jobs didn’t. He consistently created new “needs” for Macintosh Computers, iPods, iPhones, and iPads. He was a master of illustrating how these innovative products “solved problems.” Even problems that you didn’t know existed.
Take your SEO approach a step further by illustrating how your company’s products solve problems. Use product news releases to get your message out and create web links from quality websites back to your website.
Publicity helps generate website traffic and brand your company as an innovative, problem-solver. Being published in the highest quality websites also helps you land on page one of search results.
Today, publicity serves another important purpose. It gives both search engines and artificial intelligence more authoritative information about your company. AI can only draw from information that's available.
The more credible content published about your distinctive capabilities, the more likely your company will be discovered, recommended, and trusted. SEO finds customers but publicity creates them.
", "url": "https://smstroum.com/articles/seo-finds-customers-but-publicity-creates-them-1", "title": "SEO Finds Customers but Publicity Creates Them", "summary": "In marketing today, “Search” gets a lot of attention. And it should. However, there is a huge implicit assumption which is: your prospective customer knows what they need and then search for it. Henry Ford famously said, “If I had asked people what they wanted, they would have said faster horses.”
In other words, without a problem-solving message from Ford Motor Company, prospective customers wouldn’t have realized that an automobile was introduced that provided a better solution to the “problem of slow horses.”
So, when it comes to web search, don’t assume your customers know what they want! Steve Jobs didn’t. He consistently created new “needs” for Macintosh Computers, iPods, iPhones, and iPads. He was a master of illustrating how these innovative products “solved problems.” Even problems that you didn’t know existed.
Take your SEO approach a step further by illustrating how your company’s products solve problems. Use product news releases to get your message out and create web links from quality websites back to your website.
Publicity helps generate website traffic and brand your company as an innovative, problem-solver. Being published in the highest quality websites also helps you land on page one of search results.
Today, publicity serves another important purpose. It gives both search engines and artificial intelligence more authoritative information about your company. AI can only draw from information that's available.
The more credible content published about your distinctive capabilities, the more likely your company will be discovered, recommended, and trusted. SEO finds customers but publicity creates them.
", "date_modified": "2026-07-18T00:00:00.000Z" }, { "id": "urn:sha256:d8bfe36c0ee17a6d9e3ee5c628b1164e3eb114c3974175cd75f1e18fe82af823", "content_html": "Regardless of how effective a salesperson you are, the events that stimulate a prospective customer’s buying behavior are outside of your control. He or she may be expanding their operations and need new equipment, they may have just had a request for a quotation that requires your product, or perhaps their vendor has just had a price increase or botched another delivery.
The challenge, therefore, for all marketers is to get your company’s products in front of prospects when that external event arises, so your salespeople will have the best opportunity to fulfill their need.
Unless you just happen to be making sales calls on the day when one of the above events takes place or your company has the budget for an extensive, ongoing in-print and online advertising campaign, it is difficult to compete for mindshare and maintain a high level of widespread visibility. This can be done very cost-effectively, however, by implementing a well-executed, ongoing product publicity program which targets a wide range of appropriate industrial and technical magazines and websites.
When prospective customers read about your products as news in their industrial and technical magazines and on various websites, they remember and respond.
Whether your customer is an original equipment manufacturer, a distributor seeking a new line, a dealer, or an end-user, publicity in these media outlets is the most cost-effective way to assure that when a prospective customer has a need your product or service fills, you will be “in front” of them.
Similar to the real estate business, where the three most important factors are location, location, and location, the three critical factors in industrial marketing are repetition, repetition, and repetition.
This parallel applies because repetition increases the odds your products and company will be visible to a prospect when his need arises. It also facilitates branding and assures you that when a prospective customer’s level of interest piques to take action and buy, your product will be fresh on his or her mind.
So, even though you have no control over when an event might occur which will create the need for your product, you can control your ability to keep your products in front of prospective customers so they will be seen when the time is right. The best way to do this is by executing a consistent product publicity campaign that demonstrates how your products and services solve problems.
A product news release provides Four huge benefits:
1. It brands your company as a problem solver because editors are showing their readers and viewers about your capabilities,
2. It generates tons of website traffic,
3. It creates link-popularity with quality websites which enhances your organic search engine positioning
4. Helps prospective customers find you on Google, Bing, Yahoo and other search engines and platforms.
There is no better and more cost-effective way to be in front of a prospect when their need for a product or service like yours arises. Will you be there when they’re ready to buy?
", "url": "https://smstroum.com/articles/will-you-be-there-when-the-customer-is-ready-to-buy", "title": "Will You Be There When The Customer Is Ready To Buy?", "summary": "Regardless of how effective a salesperson you are, the events that stimulate a prospective customer’s buying behavior are outside of your control. He or she may be expanding their operations and need new equipment, they may have just had a request for a quotation that requires your product, or perhaps their vendor has just had a price increase or botched another delivery.
The challenge, therefore, for all marketers is to get your company’s products in front of prospects when that external event arises, so your salespeople will have the best opportunity to fulfill their need.
Unless you just happen to be making sales calls on the day when one of the above events takes place or your company has the budget for an extensive, ongoing in-print and online advertising campaign, it is difficult to compete for mindshare and maintain a high level of widespread visibility. This can be done very cost-effectively, however, by implementing a well-executed, ongoing product publicity program which targets a wide range of appropriate industrial and technical magazines and websites.
When prospective customers read about your products as news in their industrial and technical magazines and on various websites, they remember and respond.
Whether your customer is an original equipment manufacturer, a distributor seeking a new line, a dealer, or an end-user, publicity in these media outlets is the most cost-effective way to assure that when a prospective customer has a need your product or service fills, you will be “in front” of them.
Similar to the real estate business, where the three most important factors are location, location, and location, the three critical factors in industrial marketing are repetition, repetition, and repetition.
This parallel applies because repetition increases the odds your products and company will be visible to a prospect when his need arises. It also facilitates branding and assures you that when a prospective customer’s level of interest piques to take action and buy, your product will be fresh on his or her mind.
So, even though you have no control over when an event might occur which will create the need for your product, you can control your ability to keep your products in front of prospective customers so they will be seen when the time is right. The best way to do this is by executing a consistent product publicity campaign that demonstrates how your products and services solve problems.
A product news release provides Four huge benefits:
1. It brands your company as a problem solver because editors are showing their readers and viewers about your capabilities,
2. It generates tons of website traffic,
3. It creates link-popularity with quality websites which enhances your organic search engine positioning
4. Helps prospective customers find you on Google, Bing, Yahoo and other search engines and platforms.
There is no better and more cost-effective way to be in front of a prospect when their need for a product or service like yours arises. Will you be there when they’re ready to buy?
", "date_modified": "2026-07-06T00:00:00.000Z" }, { "id": "urn:sha256:e11c8d17b9621fcd2479e058e9684be5d0fa77eeb825a7d88d05c5b0988b5754", "content_html": "Everyone wants success, but few are willing to pay its price. Most people see successful entrepreneurs enjoying freedom. They don't see the years of uncertainty, sacrifice, long hours, and relentless persistence that made that freedom possible. One of the biggest misconceptions about entrepreneurship is that it begins with freedom. It doesn't.
It begins with responsibility, uncertainty, sacrifice, and a willingness to do work that most people would rather avoid. That is the part few people talk about. People are attracted to the rewards of entrepreneurship. They imagine being their own boss, setting their own schedule, building wealth, and creating something meaningful. Those rewards are real, but they come later. Long before they arrive comes the work that makes them possible.
In the early years, there is little glamour. You make the tedious and difficult phone calls. You solve problems no one else can solve. You follow up when you are tired. You work evenings and weekends. You do countless jobs that no one notices because there is no one else to do them.
Many people assume something has gone wrong when they reach this stage. They become discouraged because the work is repetitive, the progress is slow, and the recognition is nonexistent. In reality, nothing has gone wrong. That is exactly where success is built.
The work others avoid develops qualities that cannot be learned from a book or a seminar. It builds discipline. It strengthens resilience. It teaches patience. Most importantly, it creates confidence. Not the confidence that comes from positive thinking, but the confidence that comes from repeatedly doing difficult things successfully. Above all, it builds character.
That is why entrepreneurship is such a powerful vehicle for self-discovery. You may believe you are building a business, but the business is also building you. Every obstacle reveals something about your character. Every setback teaches resilience. Every responsibility forces growth. The greatest transformation often takes place within the entrepreneur, not the company.
I experienced this firsthand. Like many entrepreneurs, I initially believed success would bring happiness. When my business became successful far sooner than I expected, I discovered something surprising. Achievement and fulfillment are not the same thing.
That realization forced me to rethink both my business and my life. Through years of reflection, I came to understand that true success is not measured by money, titles, or recognition. It is measured by the freedom, purpose, independence, and fulfillment you create for yourself.
Ironically, I could never have reached that understanding without first accepting the difficult work that entrepreneurship demanded.
Success follows a predictable pattern. First comes responsibility. Then competence. Then credibility. Only after years of doing what others won't does real freedom begin to appear. The people who enjoy the greatest freedom are almost never the ones who sought comfort first. They are the ones who accepted responsibility first. They embraced difficult conversations, uncomfortable decisions, tedious work, and uncertain outcomes because those were the prices success required.
The principle extends far beyond business. The strongest relationships require difficult conversations. Good health requires consistent habits. Financial independence requires delayed gratification. Personal growth requires honest self-examination. Nearly everything worthwhile in life asks us to do something that is uncomfortable before it becomes rewarding. Consistency is key to all of life’s endeavors.
That is why success belongs to those willing to do what others won't. Not because they are more talented. Not because they are luckier. It is because they consistently choose responsibility over comfort, discipline over convenience and long-term fulfillment over short-term ease.
In the end, success is rarely one dramatic decision. It is the accumulation of hundreds of ordinary decisions to make one more call, solve one more problem, learn one more lesson, and keep moving forward when quitting would be easier. Those small choices separate those who dream about success from those who actually achieve it.
If you're willing to pay those prices, success eventually gives you something far more valuable than money or recognition. It gives you the freedom to live life on your own terms. Success requires doing what others won't.
Everyone wants success, but few are willing to pay its price. Most people see successful entrepreneurs enjoying freedom. They don't see the years of uncertainty, sacrifice, long hours, and relentless persistence that made that freedom possible. One of the biggest misconceptions about entrepreneurship is that it begins with freedom. It doesn't.
It begins with responsibility, uncertainty, sacrifice, and a willingness to do work that most people would rather avoid. That is the part few people talk about. People are attracted to the rewards of entrepreneurship. They imagine being their own boss, setting their own schedule, building wealth, and creating something meaningful. Those rewards are real, but they come later. Long before they arrive comes the work that makes them possible.
In the early years, there is little glamour. You make the tedious and difficult phone calls. You solve problems no one else can solve. You follow up when you are tired. You work evenings and weekends. You do countless jobs that no one notices because there is no one else to do them.
Many people assume something has gone wrong when they reach this stage. They become discouraged because the work is repetitive, the progress is slow, and the recognition is nonexistent. In reality, nothing has gone wrong. That is exactly where success is built.
The work others avoid develops qualities that cannot be learned from a book or a seminar. It builds discipline. It strengthens resilience. It teaches patience. Most importantly, it creates confidence. Not the confidence that comes from positive thinking, but the confidence that comes from repeatedly doing difficult things successfully. Above all, it builds character.
That is why entrepreneurship is such a powerful vehicle for self-discovery. You may believe you are building a business, but the business is also building you. Every obstacle reveals something about your character. Every setback teaches resilience. Every responsibility forces growth. The greatest transformation often takes place within the entrepreneur, not the company.
I experienced this firsthand. Like many entrepreneurs, I initially believed success would bring happiness. When my business became successful far sooner than I expected, I discovered something surprising. Achievement and fulfillment are not the same thing.
That realization forced me to rethink both my business and my life. Through years of reflection, I came to understand that true success is not measured by money, titles, or recognition. It is measured by the freedom, purpose, independence, and fulfillment you create for yourself.
Ironically, I could never have reached that understanding without first accepting the difficult work that entrepreneurship demanded.
Success follows a predictable pattern. First comes responsibility. Then competence. Then credibility. Only after years of doing what others won't does real freedom begin to appear. The people who enjoy the greatest freedom are almost never the ones who sought comfort first. They are the ones who accepted responsibility first. They embraced difficult conversations, uncomfortable decisions, tedious work, and uncertain outcomes because those were the prices success required.
The principle extends far beyond business. The strongest relationships require difficult conversations. Good health requires consistent habits. Financial independence requires delayed gratification. Personal growth requires honest self-examination. Nearly everything worthwhile in life asks us to do something that is uncomfortable before it becomes rewarding. Consistency is key to all of life’s endeavors.
That is why success belongs to those willing to do what others won't. Not because they are more talented. Not because they are luckier. It is because they consistently choose responsibility over comfort, discipline over convenience and long-term fulfillment over short-term ease.
In the end, success is rarely one dramatic decision. It is the accumulation of hundreds of ordinary decisions to make one more call, solve one more problem, learn one more lesson, and keep moving forward when quitting would be easier. Those small choices separate those who dream about success from those who actually achieve it.
If you're willing to pay those prices, success eventually gives you something far more valuable than money or recognition. It gives you the freedom to live life on your own terms. Success requires doing what others won't.
Back in the mid-seventies when I was a young man interviewing for a sales manager position at a fax machine company which was brand new technology then. I don’t recall the company name because, after all, that was long ago. But I sure remember that I was mystified as to why I failed to get the job offer. For any driven young person who thinks highly of himself or herself, that not an unusual point-of-view.
Here’s what happened. I had an interview in the morning with a recruiter from the company who was very positive and selected me to meet his Vice President Sales who was going to be in town at the Hyatt Regency Hotel that evening. I arrived at 7:30 pm sharp and ended up spending several hours with them drinking wine, talking about all sorts of stuff and having a grand time. I was a “shoe in” for the job, I thought.
A couple of days later, however, I was rejected for the position and was haunted by their decision for many years thereafter. I knew that something didn’t feel right. Then it came to me at about 3:00 am thirty years later. I didn’t get the sales management position because I was too young. Not chronologically, but in terms of maturity. I wasn’t mature enough to realize that my behavior that night was inappropriate for a sales management candidate.
I still wonder what might have happened if I had the maturity at that time to request a Diet Coke rather than a glass of wine and stayed for a half hour chat with the Vice President, thanked them both for the opportunity to be a candidate for the job, and then bid them a good evening. Would I have received the job offer? Probably would have.
Today’s “maturity check” equivalent to a meeting at the Hyatt Regency Hotel takes place much earlier in the job candidate evaluation process. It starts with a Google search of the candidate. Job candidates make it much easier for prospective employers these days.
All a prospective employer has to do is go online and look at Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn, X, and other websites and see what kind of posts the candidate makes routinely. Is the person thoughtful? Are they considerate and respectful of others? Do they have commonsense? Did their posts illustrate maturity?
Rightly or wrongly, prospective employers will be impacted by digital content and make hiring decisions based, in part, on posts. Just as they will by a candidate’s grooming, body language, and other factors. Remember the expression “You are what you eat.” Well, today “You are what you post.” Therefore, be careful. It is important think ahead before posting. It could cost you a job, client, or customer and you won’t even know why.
Back in the mid-seventies when I was a young man interviewing for a sales manager position at a fax machine company which was brand new technology then. I don’t recall the company name because, after all, that was long ago. But I sure remember that I was mystified as to why I failed to get the job offer. For any driven young person who thinks highly of himself or herself, that not an unusual point-of-view.
Here’s what happened. I had an interview in the morning with a recruiter from the company who was very positive and selected me to meet his Vice President Sales who was going to be in town at the Hyatt Regency Hotel that evening. I arrived at 7:30 pm sharp and ended up spending several hours with them drinking wine, talking about all sorts of stuff and having a grand time. I was a “shoe in” for the job, I thought.
A couple of days later, however, I was rejected for the position and was haunted by their decision for many years thereafter. I knew that something didn’t feel right. Then it came to me at about 3:00 am thirty years later. I didn’t get the sales management position because I was too young. Not chronologically, but in terms of maturity. I wasn’t mature enough to realize that my behavior that night was inappropriate for a sales management candidate.
I still wonder what might have happened if I had the maturity at that time to request a Diet Coke rather than a glass of wine and stayed for a half hour chat with the Vice President, thanked them both for the opportunity to be a candidate for the job, and then bid them a good evening. Would I have received the job offer? Probably would have.
Today’s “maturity check” equivalent to a meeting at the Hyatt Regency Hotel takes place much earlier in the job candidate evaluation process. It starts with a Google search of the candidate. Job candidates make it much easier for prospective employers these days.
All a prospective employer has to do is go online and look at Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn, X, and other websites and see what kind of posts the candidate makes routinely. Is the person thoughtful? Are they considerate and respectful of others? Do they have commonsense? Did their posts illustrate maturity?
Rightly or wrongly, prospective employers will be impacted by digital content and make hiring decisions based, in part, on posts. Just as they will by a candidate’s grooming, body language, and other factors. Remember the expression “You are what you eat.” Well, today “You are what you post.” Therefore, be careful. It is important think ahead before posting. It could cost you a job, client, or customer and you won’t even know why.
Artificial Intelligence is changing the way we work, communicate, and make decisions. It can generate reports, write articles, answer questions, analyze data, and perform tasks that once required significant human effort. Understandably, many people are asking whether experience still matters. I believe it matters more than ever.
Throughout my career, I have witnessed remarkable technological advances. I have seen businesses transformed by computers, fax machines, the internet, email, websites, social media, and smartphones. Each innovation brought predictions that certain skills would become obsolete. Yet one thing remained constant: technology changed the tools, but it did not change human nature.
Artificial intelligence can process information at incredible speed. What it cannot do is replace wisdom. Wisdom comes from experience. It is developed through successes and failures, good decisions and bad decisions, opportunities seized and opportunities missed. It is acquired by working with people, solving problems, overcoming setbacks, and learning lessons that cannot be found in a database.
When I founded Venmark International in 1976, there was no internet. If we wanted information, we had to find it ourselves. If we made mistakes, we learned from them. Those experiences taught lessons that no textbook could provide. More importantly, they taught judgment.
Judgment is one of the most valuable assets any entrepreneur or professional can possess.
Artificial intelligence can provide information. It can even suggest solutions. However, it cannot determine whether a particular decision is right for you, your business, your employees, or your customers. It cannot fully understand your values, your goals, or the unique circumstances surrounding a difficult choice. Information and judgment are not the same thing.
In fact, as information becomes more abundant, the ability to interpret it wisely becomes increasingly important.
Consider two individuals given access to the exact same AI tools. One may achieve exceptional results while the other struggles. The difference is rarely the technology. More often, it is the experience, perspective, and judgment each person brings to the table.
Experience teaches us which questions to ask.
Experience teaches us when something sounds good in theory but may fail in practice.
Experience teaches us that people are often more complicated than data suggests.
Experience teaches us that there are usually consequences beyond the immediate outcome.
Perhaps most importantly, experience teaches humility. The longer we live and the more challenges we encounter, the more we realize how much there is still to learn.
I use artificial intelligence. I find it fascinating and useful. Like many technological advances before it, it can increase productivity and provide valuable insights. But I view it as a tool, not a substitute for human judgment.
The real value of experience has never been the ability to memorize facts. The real value of experience is the ability to interpret and understand what those facts mean.
As artificial intelligence continues to evolve, the people who will benefit most are not necessarily those with the newest technology. They will be those who combine powerful tools with sound judgment, strong character, and the wisdom resulting from years of accumulated experience. Technology will continue to change. It always has. However, the qualities that lead to success—integrity, perseverance, sound judgment, and the ability to learn from experience—remain timeless.
Artificial intelligence may help us work more efficiently, but it cannot replace the wisdom that comes from living, learning, and growing throughout our lives.
Artificial Intelligence is changing the way we work, communicate, and make decisions. It can generate reports, write articles, answer questions, analyze data, and perform tasks that once required significant human effort. Understandably, many people are asking whether experience still matters. I believe it matters more than ever.
Throughout my career, I have witnessed remarkable technological advances. I have seen businesses transformed by computers, fax machines, the internet, email, websites, social media, and smartphones. Each innovation brought predictions that certain skills would become obsolete. Yet one thing remained constant: technology changed the tools, but it did not change human nature.
Artificial intelligence can process information at incredible speed. What it cannot do is replace wisdom. Wisdom comes from experience. It is developed through successes and failures, good decisions and bad decisions, opportunities seized and opportunities missed. It is acquired by working with people, solving problems, overcoming setbacks, and learning lessons that cannot be found in a database.
When I founded Venmark International in 1976, there was no internet. If we wanted information, we had to find it ourselves. If we made mistakes, we learned from them. Those experiences taught lessons that no textbook could provide. More importantly, they taught judgment.
Judgment is one of the most valuable assets any entrepreneur or professional can possess.
Artificial intelligence can provide information. It can even suggest solutions. However, it cannot determine whether a particular decision is right for you, your business, your employees, or your customers. It cannot fully understand your values, your goals, or the unique circumstances surrounding a difficult choice. Information and judgment are not the same thing.
In fact, as information becomes more abundant, the ability to interpret it wisely becomes increasingly important.
Consider two individuals given access to the exact same AI tools. One may achieve exceptional results while the other struggles. The difference is rarely the technology. More often, it is the experience, perspective, and judgment each person brings to the table.
Experience teaches us which questions to ask.
Experience teaches us when something sounds good in theory but may fail in practice.
Experience teaches us that people are often more complicated than data suggests.
Experience teaches us that there are usually consequences beyond the immediate outcome.
Perhaps most importantly, experience teaches humility. The longer we live and the more challenges we encounter, the more we realize how much there is still to learn.
I use artificial intelligence. I find it fascinating and useful. Like many technological advances before it, it can increase productivity and provide valuable insights. But I view it as a tool, not a substitute for human judgment.
The real value of experience has never been the ability to memorize facts. The real value of experience is the ability to interpret and understand what those facts mean.
As artificial intelligence continues to evolve, the people who will benefit most are not necessarily those with the newest technology. They will be those who combine powerful tools with sound judgment, strong character, and the wisdom resulting from years of accumulated experience. Technology will continue to change. It always has. However, the qualities that lead to success—integrity, perseverance, sound judgment, and the ability to learn from experience—remain timeless.
Artificial intelligence may help us work more efficiently, but it cannot replace the wisdom that comes from living, learning, and growing throughout our lives.
(B) BOUNCE BACK – As Jack Welch, former GE Chairman wrote, “We would also add two other qualities to the must-have list. One is heavy-duty resilience, a requirement because anyone who is really in the game messes up at some point. You’re not playing hard enough if you don’t! But when your turn comes, don’t make the all-too-human mistake of thinking getting ahead is about minimizing what happened. The most successful people in any new job always own their failures, learn from them, regroup, and then start again with renewed speed, vigor, and conviction.”
(A) ABILITY TO SEE AROUND CORNERS – Jack Welch also wrote, “The other quality we’d mention is really special but quite rare: the ability to see around corners, to anticipate the radically unexpected. Now, practically no one starts their career with a sixth sense for market changes. It takes time to get a feel for what competitors are thinking and what product or service customers will eventually want – once they know it exists. But the bottom line is, the sooner you develop this acumen and the more you hone it, the farther you will go.”
(L) LEVERAGE – From a marketing standpoint, take full advantage of publicity and the social media to create your brand and illustrate how your products or services solve problems and help serve the community. Be consistent because in marketing there are three things that matter most: repetition, repetition, and repetition. Regardless of how many messages you put in front of prospects and how many times you call on them, they are only going to be receptive when they are ready and that is typically beyond your control. Unless, of course, you can tell when their current vendor is going to raise prices or botch an order, or some other event creates the opportunity.
(L) LEVITY – Being an entrepreneur is serious business and very stressful. You have money at risk, often times other peoples’ money too, and are responsible for employees and their families. So, to help diffuse the weight of this responsibility you need to laugh and live. Make the time for vacations and truly “vacate” and get away. Schedule them in advance. Sitting on the beach with an iPad solving problems back at the office isn’t vacating. You need to provide fun for your employees beyond building something together which, of course, is a blast! Quarterly parties, barbecues, softball games, beach parties, and other social-business events can go a long way to build a cohesive team.
(S) STAND FOR SOMETHING – This relates to your brand and the way you conduct business. I am a product publicist and truly believe that publicity is the best marketing value there is and in order to serve the small business community, I had to create a business model that would allow our firm, Venmark International, to provide high-level publicity services, domestic and international; for fees small businesses could afford. Further, in order to service media outlets properly and get the most possible exposure for our clients, I created a writing formula that I have never violated. The result is the product news we provide is sought after by many editors and we have a loyal client base including many companies which have partnered with us since 1977.
", "url": "https://smstroum.com/articles/it-takes-b.a.l.l.s.-to-be-an-entrepreneur", "title": "It Takes B.A.L.L.S. to be an Entrepreneur", "summary": "(B) BOUNCE BACK – As Jack Welch, former GE Chairman wrote, “We would also add two other qualities to the must-have list. One is heavy-duty resilience, a requirement because anyone who is really in the game messes up at some point. You’re not playing hard enough if you don’t! But when your turn comes, don’t make the all-too-human mistake of thinking getting ahead is about minimizing what happened. The most successful people in any new job always own their failures, learn from them, regroup, and then start again with renewed speed, vigor, and conviction.”
(A) ABILITY TO SEE AROUND CORNERS – Jack Welch also wrote, “The other quality we’d mention is really special but quite rare: the ability to see around corners, to anticipate the radically unexpected. Now, practically no one starts their career with a sixth sense for market changes. It takes time to get a feel for what competitors are thinking and what product or service customers will eventually want – once they know it exists. But the bottom line is, the sooner you develop this acumen and the more you hone it, the farther you will go.”
(L) LEVERAGE – From a marketing standpoint, take full advantage of publicity and the social media to create your brand and illustrate how your products or services solve problems and help serve the community. Be consistent because in marketing there are three things that matter most: repetition, repetition, and repetition. Regardless of how many messages you put in front of prospects and how many times you call on them, they are only going to be receptive when they are ready and that is typically beyond your control. Unless, of course, you can tell when their current vendor is going to raise prices or botch an order, or some other event creates the opportunity.
(L) LEVITY – Being an entrepreneur is serious business and very stressful. You have money at risk, often times other peoples’ money too, and are responsible for employees and their families. So, to help diffuse the weight of this responsibility you need to laugh and live. Make the time for vacations and truly “vacate” and get away. Schedule them in advance. Sitting on the beach with an iPad solving problems back at the office isn’t vacating. You need to provide fun for your employees beyond building something together which, of course, is a blast! Quarterly parties, barbecues, softball games, beach parties, and other social-business events can go a long way to build a cohesive team.
(S) STAND FOR SOMETHING – This relates to your brand and the way you conduct business. I am a product publicist and truly believe that publicity is the best marketing value there is and in order to serve the small business community, I had to create a business model that would allow our firm, Venmark International, to provide high-level publicity services, domestic and international; for fees small businesses could afford. Further, in order to service media outlets properly and get the most possible exposure for our clients, I created a writing formula that I have never violated. The result is the product news we provide is sought after by many editors and we have a loyal client base including many companies which have partnered with us since 1977.
", "date_modified": "2026-05-24T00:00:00.000Z" } ] }