U.S.S. Entrepreneur

Growing up, most of my parents' friends were hustlers. They had ideas, they researched markets, and then they launched businesses. Some of them succeeded, many of them failed, but at the end of the day, somehow, everyone made it. Sure, some fathers (and mothers) were relatively much more successful than the others but everyone succeeded -- they got the American dream as it was originally conceived. They went from nothing to something. Something being defined as middle class, or upper middle class. It's quite an achievement and one most immigrant children are familiar with. It's no big shocker when generation 2.0 children are most proud of their parents. They work hard for their money.

As a kid, I wanted to be an entrepreneur. By my definition it was like being a business man except more varied and exciting. Tragically, there's no training to become an entreprenuer. I guess, at the minimum, you need smarts, dedication, and a willingness to engage in some risk. But what beyond that? A college degree, a partner, a plan, does any of that really matter? There's no formula for success here and it's not something anyone can just do. I wonder now, if given the chance, I would still want to be an entreprenuer. I'm not so sure.

Most of my peers are the same age -- if not older -- than my parents' friends were when they left their home countries to come here and make a life. They were saddled with a language barrier, a wife, kids, little (if any) savings, and a whole bunch of things I can hardly conceive of. Yet they made it. Restaurants, liquor marts, random retail stores, furniture outlets, everything under the sun. I doubt most of these young men chose their path to success, they just took whatever opportunities presented themselves. They didn't really have a choice right?

Any time that the Chinese dads got together, at a party or other social gathering, all they did was sit around and talk business. They exchanged ideas, helped introduce contacts to each other, and generally talked money, money, money. It seemed so boring then. Much more exciting was the social gossip that the moms engaged in. Now though, I wish I could rewind to that time to see if these dads knew what they were talking about and to maybe glean some knowledge. Perhaps even an informal manual of "This is how we did it." Or better yet, "This is how you do it."