THE METAMORPHOSIS
By
ERNIE D. DELFIN
ENTREPRENEURS CREATE AND PROVIDE
THE ENGINES TO
OUR WORLD’S ECONOMY
Businesses, big or small,
are started by entrepreneurs, who are
visionaries. From the small family
business like a bakery to multi-national giants like Apple or Microsoft, they are founded by uncommon men and women who believe
and create that there should be a better
“machine” to enhance the quality of life
than the gadgets that are already in
existence. Just think about the evolution of the smart phones. Less than 50 years ago, there were no cell
phones. The first cell phones were as
heavy as a baby in your arms! I still
remember my first car-phone that was
mounted near the driver’s side and its antenna was sticking like a huge dragon
fly bolted on top of the trunk!
Since the industrial revolution, entrepreneurs continue to create jobs,
empower and employ millions of people around the world. Collectively, they provide the engines that turn the propellers of industry from America to
Zimbabwe. Businesses --- from a seedling
farm in an agricultural village to the hi-tech
factories of I-phones and computers --- flourish because of these modern
day heroes called entrepreneurs. They
are the real heroes --- not the politicians nor the so-called public servants
---- who deserve public respect and recognization, every day of our
lives! There should be a National Day
for Entrepreneurs like Memorial Day or Labor Day or Mothers Day to
honor them.
As a
flashback, and as a former small business
owner-entrepreneur myself, I am biased in
favor of all entrepreneurs, including those struggling to succeed, who risk almost
everything they possess to follow their
dreams with the hope of becoming successful someday. Unfortunately, not all who desire to
become successful entrepreneurs will
make it, due to many factors: from lack of capital, to sub-standard
marketing strategies, to lack of management expertise, to lack of manpower
skills, etc. Yet, for every 7 who fail initially, there are probably 2 or 3 who
will make it, who will eventually be able to employ 5 or more people each to grow their respective businesses.
Having been one of the
lucky ones who survived and succeeded of becoming my own boss for over 30 years
now, I know those scary feelings like having earthquakes in your bones, especially
those times when the cash flow was low and you have to
write the payroll checks! There were moments of regrets for having left the confines of a comfortable but
unchallenging government auditing job
(which was a big magnet that attract many people seek to savor or enjoy for its relative security and great fringe
benefits) but in the end, that
calculated risk was well worth it.
In retrospect, there
comes a time for every man to do the
unthinkable, to leave his comfort zone to in order to grow by risking something despite that it can
be a bloody process, like the unassuming
caterpillar, to become a happy and colorful butterfly that will then enjoy its prize of
hovering and smelling countless flowers along its flight.
* * * *
Now, that my generation is starting to retire , in
my book, even without the government
pension, my overall life’s journey was more colorful and exciting than most of my
contemporaries who worked solely for the
government or big corporations as employees for most of their lives. Statistics
and studies show that thousands or
millions of people are not quite happy going to their boring job, but have to
work because they have to earn their bread and butter to live. On the other
hand, most entrepreneurs go to work because they wanted
to , with that inexplicable joy and
excitement that they feel whenever they can shout EUREKA, for having
successfully successfully created
something that they dreamed about for a long time. As a
lasting prize, they are compensated handsomely once the consuming public embraces and buys their creations, like the Google products or the Apple I-phones.
Looking back the last 40 years or so, it saddened me that some of my old
time friends especially those whose only
job was in the government service are now dead,
and did not live long enough to enjoy their so-called retirement. Their
lives were just focused to working and many socials that give ephemeral
happiness. It has been proven that people who are happy and excited
in their lives or in their work tend to live longer than those unhappy or bored in their work and in their
lives. I hope I am wrong to assume that many of these
unhappy people passed away while their life’s music box was still unopened.
On the other side of
the coin, I have witnessed many who live
a full life giving and obviously very happy and fulfilled. In my Rotary network, I have seen Rotarians in
their 70’s or 80’s who are still
involved in their communities as volunteers or
mentors to others. For instance, I am proud that to mention a
great and special Rotarian friend from Orange County, PDG Jim Young, great human being who is known as “Mr. Paul
Harris” (the founder of Rotary) for his decades of performing “Paul Harris” capsulating
the essence of Rotary since its foundation in 1905. Even
in his retirement in education and the arts, he continued to be very active in
Rotary as well as hosting a Poetry Class in Cal State University in
Fullerton, that was designed mainly for seniors, which I have also attended
several times.
He has performed “ Mr.
Paul Harris” a one-man show over 360 times around the world, including India and the Philippines, which I helped
coordinate during Rotary’s Centennial Celebrations. Because of his lively spirits and
life-long enthusiasm and life-long support for the arts and
sciences, the Cal State Fullerton
honored him by naming the a university
wing, now known as the “James Young Theater.” His music box was maximized and utilized
to the fullest, which is his legacy to our society that will
last a long long time after he is gone
to the Life Beyond!
As a postscript, as my friend Jim Young can no longer perform
as “Mr. Paul Harris” due to his aging body, he has found and inspired another younger but equally competent actor, ZOOT, to perform to “Mr. Paul Harris”. Both Jim and Zoot belong
to the same Rotary Club of Fullerton.
Rotarian Zoot has spoken before our GKeRotary Club and gave a sample of his PH performance. (Our
e-Club should work for his trip to the
Philippines to perform “Mr. Paul Harris” like PDG Jim Young)
A trivia about ZOOT: after marrying a Filipino singer, Monette
Velasco, he has adopted Velasco as his last name, although in the realm of the
theater, he is known simply as ZOOT. The
current Executive Director of the Muckhenthaler Cultural Center in Fullerton
California, Zoot is also the author of “The First 100 Days Leading Small
Non-Profits Out of the Wilderness”, which this
columnist and Rotarian highly recommend for those in the non- profit
organization arena.
* * * *
To summarize, what
makes a person an entrepreneur?
I think there is an invisible trait that is uncommon. A risk-taker, a strong willed, stubborn
personality are probably the predominant
traits. That can-do attitude that propels the entrepreneur to act on his belief that “there
should be a better way” to improve or
modify an existing service or product is another ingredient of a successful
entrepreneur. A person that is
self-starter that dreams his work, from the time he wakes up to the time he goes to bed. For entrepreneurs, they eat, sleep and work their dreams with them 24 / 7. They do
not know how to stop working on their dreams as their mental fuel tank is never
empty .
There are classroom
classes on Entrepreneurships but like
swimming, the person will never learn how to swim without going into the ocean
of entrepreneurship to be real wet and
often times muddied, and sometimes even
gets sick due to some external elements, especially when the
entrepreneur’s immunities are weakened!
Speaking about
Entrepreneurship, our Global Kalinga
e-Rotary Club President Chuck Cota in
joint collaboration with several Clubs,like the Altadena Rotary Club of
District 5300 is now working for a
Entrepreneurs EXPO slated for early next
year, where vendors catering to entrepreneurs and would-be entrepreneurs can meet successful
entrepreneurs who desire to support and mentor others to become entrepreneurs.
There is in our world today an urgent and massive need for more
entrepreneurs, as there are more people to be employed, to be fed, clothed and
sheltered. One of the best and proven ways to provide this massive need
is through ENTREPRENEURSHIP, that disciplined human process to create and provide the
products and services that people need in order to live a decent life on this
earth. There is no way that the
government nor the existing companies and organizations today can employ most of
this gargantuan supply of manpower that are being born every second of every day
of the year!
In his induction speech last
month our very own GK e-Rotary Club
President Chuck Cota, announced with his ambitious project about hosting an
ENTREPRENEURS EXPO, for early next 2015. In consultation with other Rotary Club
partners in other Districts in LA, Orange
and Riverside counties, he is
now busy determining the appropriate date and the venue. President Cota hopes to announce and
distribute the flyers during the ARTESIA BUSINESS FAIR AND DIVERSITY FESTIVAL on
October 4, 2014, where at least
15 countries have signed up to participate.
Hundreds of businesses,
restaurants and vendors as well as non-profit organizations, including our Global Kalinga e-Rotary Club will have a booth to “LIGHT UP ROTARY” , the
theme of RI President Gary Huang
this Rotary year.
In closing, this entrepreneur-columnist would like to
share an old ENTREPRENEURS CREDO poster hanging in his home office:
THE ENTREPRENEUR’S CREDO
I do not choose to be
a common man,
It is my right to be
uncommon … if I can,
I seek opportunity …
not security.
I do not wish to be a
kept citizen.
Humbled and dulled by
having the
State look after
me.
I want to take the
calculated risk;
To dream and to build.
To fail and to
succeed.
I refuse to barter
incentive for a dole;
I prefer the
challenges of life
To the guaranteed
existence;
The thrill of
fulfillment
To the stale calm of
Utopia.
I will not trade
freedom for beneficence
Nor my dignity for a handout
I will never cower
before any master
Nor bend to any
threat.
It is my heritage to
stand erect.
Proud and
unafraid;
To think and act for
myself,
To enjoy the benefit
of my creations
And to face the world
boldly and say:
This, with God’s help,
I have done
All this is what it
means
To be an Entrepreneur.
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www.foundation4nextgen.zhuncity.org
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