Build a Better Business in 2016

In 2016, The Daniel Island News is committing the paper’s resources and our staff’s time to expand our efforts to promote and support the Daniel Island business community. In addition to the traditional sponsorships and the news and feature coverage of business matters that we publish on a regular basis, we are creating a “Build a Better Business” initiative. Through articles, educational seminars, business awards, lunch and learn gatherings and other interactive community opportunities, we hope to impact our business community for the better.

This week we launch “Build a Better Business in 2016” by seeking input from local business leaders about their first jobs. Like Robert Fulghum book “All I Really Need to Know I Learned in Kindergarten,” there is some truth in the statement that “all I really need to know about business I learned on my first job.” Well, maybe not “all”, but indeed our first job experiences, whether good or bad, set an example and provided insight for how to run our businesses or engage in our work today.

When I reflected on my first job, I remembered that from about the ages of 8-12 I pulled my wagon through our neighborhood and collected newspapers with my best friend Brad. We lived at the top of a hill, so this was indeed hard work. We stored the papers in my childhood home’s basement for weeks, adding to the growing pile until it was time to load my dad’s pickup truck to take them to the junkyard. We had two junkyards in town, and we would call to see which was paying the highest price for newspaper. Our goal, earn enough money to buy baseball cards with the ultimate desired result – to have a complete set of Topps baseball cards. In 1978, we reached that goal.

I still have that complete set of 1978 baseball cards. Those cards remind me what I learned from that first entrepreneurial effort. Brad and I learned to work together toward a common goal. We learned that our neighbors depended on us to collect the papers as we promised. We learned how to find the best price for our product. And all these years later I still find myself carrying stacks of papers around the neighborhood!

We invite you to read what local business leaders learned from their first jobs (pages 14-15) and to share your first job experiences with our readers, together with the lessons learned. You can send your reflections to sdetar@thedanielislandnews.com. We also invite you to share other business building ideas and seminar topic suggestions. Let’s build a better business community together in 2016.