Forums: Discussions for entrepreneurs and small business.

In this weekend`s Wall Street Journal, Todd Beamer`s father (Todd Beamer of "Let`s Role" lore) wrote an article about his son and the movie which has come out -- the focus of which is the flight that crashed in a Pennsylvania field on September 11, 2001.  ( I refuse to use the media`s phrase, nine, one, one.)

My understanding about Todd Beamer is that he was a go-getter, an entrepreneur, and my head bows to our loss.

I will never pay money to see this movie...but Mr. Beamer`s article made me ask myself, what  could Todd have acheived, had this not happened?

It also made me think about choices we make.

In August of 2001, I had gotten hired as a VP of marketing at a very large financial instituion on Wall Street. 

On the morning that I got the offer, I went down to the ground floor plaza of the building, and I coud see the Towers, one block away.  I thought "I did it, I made it"...I`m working on Wall Street.  Having grown up in NJ...the Towers were my beacon.

This was important to me because I`m a bit of an American History freak, and I know that our founding Fathers walked on the same streets on which my building was located. Alexander Hamilton once had a flat 2 blocks from where my office was.  George Washington was sworn in as our first President, practically next door to our buildin.

My daily commute took me under the Towers every morining.  This is eerie but, on the Friday before that Tuesday, my subway pass to the WTC fell out of my purse on to the tracks--which meant I`d have to get a new one.

On the moring of the 11th...I`d awakened from a disturbing dream that had something to do with the earth shaking.   I turned on the TV, and you know the rest.

I was at the beach and the Ocean was glistening, the sky was jewel-like, the juxt of position of the two scenes was, and still remains heart wrenching in my mind.

I went back to work at the end of Sept., (we were not allowed back until then) my office over looked "the pit", which is what the work area of "Ground Zero" had come to be known.  I would weep every day for the year that I was at this new job, watching everything that was happening...ambulances finding people, ceremonies...if you saw it on the news....I saw it first from my building.

One day, I was looking out the window and saw a group of Labrador Retrievers, looking for "something".  They were working so hard, I could see that they were exhausted, but there was an elegance, a grace.  Almost as if they were guided by something higher.

It was at that very moment that I knew, I had to leave corporate America and go out on my own and I knew it had to have something to do with dogs.  (What is dog spelled backwards?)

I didn`t mean to bring our community down with this story, but I believe that we all have a moment when "we just know" to Start Up!   Could it be possible that something as horrific as September 11, 2001 was my moment?

What was your moment?


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Kim
the-petset.com
blogfabulous.com

Thanks for sharing your experience, Kim.  I really think that, unfortunately, a lot of us need a "divine wake up call" (many of which are not pleasant!) to set us on our proper path.

I think I missed my first one in 1998 when I had a pretty serious car accident, but I`m finally listening after my second.  :)

Strangely enough, I just blogged about this the other day.  You can read the post here:

http://winsomeevents.blogspot.com/2006/04/why-i-chose-to-bec ome-wedding-and.html

One thing I didn`t mention in the post, is that I had a pretty serious "illness" hit me in September 2005.  A blood vessel spasmed in my brain due to an over-abundance of stress.  At first, they thought I was having a stroke (I didn`t even know 30-somethings could have strokes!), but, thankfully, it was something less serious.  Nevertheless, after spending two days in the emergency room and close to a week wondering what was wrong with me and whether I`d ever "snap out of" the semi-catatonic state I was in, it soon became all too clear that I had wasted far too many years trying to make myself love a career I knew was wrong for me even before college graduation.

When I saw that quote from Steve Jobs, it was all over...a couple more months and I hope to forever be free of the shackles I`ve kept myself in for years....

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MeLissa
Independent Chocolatier for Dove Chocolate Discoveries http://www.ChocoRocco.com Facebook: http://www.Facebook.com/ChocoRocco

Wow Melissa -- you really have had some wake up calls.  I hope you are in good health now.

It is true that we put and keep shakles on ourselves...the interesting thing is that they don`t completely disappear -- everyday (and every September) I am reminded of what brought me to where I am now.

Continued success.


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Kim
the-petset.com
blogfabulous.com

Wow! Thanks for sharing your stories. I think I`ve always known I wanted to be self-employed before I had learned the word "entrepreneur." Some bad life choices in my younger years and lack of confidence kept me in constant need of a regular-paying job. But I used those years to gain the experience I now have. I`ve made some much better choices in recent years - mainly marrying my most wonderful husband - and now I`m on the road to where I`ve always wanted to be.

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VickiJ
www.freshairjournal.com

You know, it just dawned on me that I didn`t even mention that the day that I first had my "brain thing" was September 11, 2005.  Very ironic.

Thanks for checking on me, Kim.  I`m doing just fine.  I`ve made a speedy recovery thanks to some very talented chiropractic and alternative health providers.  :)  If you`re going to get sick, having a chiropractic (or medical) student as your hubby, is very nice....lots of "hook ups!"

And, you`re right - the shackles are still there.  Just yesterday I was contemplating whether I`m being foolish trying to chase this dream of mine, but all I have to do is think of good ol` Mr. Jobs` quote and I`m back on track.  :) Having a wonderful husband is one of my best choices, too!  ;)

 

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MeLissa
Independent Chocolatier for Dove Chocolate Discoveries http://www.ChocoRocco.com Facebook: http://www.Facebook.com/ChocoRocco

Some bad life choices in my younger years and lack of confidence kept me in constant need of a regular-paying job.

Vicki your quote is an interesting self-observation...I wonder sometimes, what cool-aid some of us women of a "certain" age were drinking back in our 20`s...why did we think 9-5 was the only solution?

And Melissa, you bring up an extraordinarily important point....I know my business would not exist with out the confidence and support I received from my husband.  He is an angel.


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Kim
the-petset.com
blogfabulous.com