Let 2019 be known as the year I started a business.
And let me say upfront, I probably have no business starting a business. I am not a business person. And since my “business” is really just me, I should probably just say that this is the year I became self-employed.
I’ll admit that I have no idea what I’m doing. But, you know what? That’s OK. I suspect that most people have no idea what they’re doing most of the time.
What I do know is why I’m doing this. And I think that might be the important part.
Set Sail
So I started this business thing and I decided to call it Rising Tide. A sort of homage to the Bay of Fundy, home to the highest tides in the world. The ebb and flow of the tides here is phenomenal and I want to evoke that powerful feeling.
I’m also trying to bring to mind the fairly well-known aphorism “a rising tide lifts all boats.” I love the succinct simplicity of this general truth and I think it resonates with people in this region.
The idea of the rising tide that lifts all boats is an economic one, popularized by JFK in the 60s, implying that an improvement in the economy will benefit all participants. It’s idealistic and simplistic and perhaps it doesn’t hold much water these days (pun intended), but I’m an idealist and I like simple, and I believe it can still be effective.
The internet presence of small business in the maritimes is pretty abysmal. A lot of businesses here don’t have a website. Many who do have one don’t know how to update it. I can help with this, I want to help with this, and that’s why I started Rising Tide.
Anchors Aweigh
But again, I’m not much of a business person. I just want to help. So I am going to try to do that this year, in my own way.
This is not one of those succeed or die situations. I’m very fortunate that at this stage of my life I have the freedom to try something new. This is an experiment. I want to find out if I can do this in a way that supports the life I want to live. I want to figure out a way to help others while staying true to my own values. I’m giving it a year to see how it goes.
I’m determined to work hard at this new venture, but I don’t want it to take over my life, so I still plan to be present here, creating and struggling and sharing the rest of my life. I have a website for my business, and this is not it. This is for everything else. But I felt like I should share this big project that I have been working on. It’s all related.
So, here’s to trying something new. I have so much to learn and that excites me. I know it’s going to be really difficult, but I’m hoping that the challenges are surmountable and lead to new and exciting things that I can’t even imagine right now.
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