When you’re young, the opportunities are infinite because everything and anything seems possible. Flying doesn’t seem all that outrageous, travelling in a circus seems so much fun, and owning your own personal amusement park is quite feasible when you get a little bit older. We call it being young and naïve, but what we fail to see and appreciate is the imagination and enthusiasm so prevalent in our younger years. Somewhere along the way we lose this zest to the mundane routine of everyday life and the world suddenly isn’t so exciting. This applies to all aspects of life and I can somewhat relate to this notion. For this reason, the gig entry that resonated with me was the two cousins’ story about starting a lemonade stand.
From a young age, I also harbored the entrepreneurial spirit which compelled me to start my own businesses. Like the lemonade salesmen, Chris and Isaac Mauro, I started fairly young and the ideas I had were also unconventional. During the fifth grade, I began buying bulk packages of snacks and candies and started selling and trading with my peers. Although, it does not seem like a novel idea it was innovative at the time considering our only source of food was lunch from the cafeteria. Similarly, Chris and Isaac took a very traditional idea, made a few adjustments, and made their business a big hit. Soon the school caught on and disallowed my business due to my competition with the cafeteria, however, I was able to convince the school to allow my class to sell ice cream and raise money. Subsequently, I shifted my business to trading cards, which were a hit back in the days. In slang terms, I was a little hustler, finding niches, and capitalizing.
I took this mantra of “anything is possible” with me and in particular, put it to good use when I became a senior in high school. When I became class president, my class was nearly five thousand dollars in debt and the prospect of having events such as boat cruise and senior ball was very bleak. While car washes and other fundraisers were efficient, they were not going to be able to raise the tens of thousands of dollars we needed, so I was forced to use my imagination and thing outside of the box. Through local-business sponsors, city-wide fundraisers, and other tactics, we were able to have a great senior year.
As I grew older, I kept my innovative thinking and branched out into other business ventures. At 18, I was able to process loans as an independent contractor due to my certification as a notary public. I was working for several lenders and did fairly well. However, soon the real estate market came crashing down and instead of leaving it I shifted my focus towards purchasing foreclosed homes in places like Cleveland, Atlanta, and Buffalo. I strongly feel that my strong reliance on my innovation and imagination that I developed younger truly helped me. As I entered college, I saw a niche for tax preparation, so I became certified and started a small business preparing taxes for college students. I coupled that with my real estate enterprise and created JT Solutions LLC, which is still functioning today.
Unfortunately, in recent years I gave into the traditional working for companies instead of continuing my entrepreneurial ambitions and I have witnessed the youthful innovation and imagination slowly slip away. So while this gig entry is very refreshing and uplifting I understand that the future is not so bright considering that I have been down that path before. I really enjoyed the dialogue between Chris and Isaac and how their business became something that they enjoyed. This entry really inspires me to break awhile from mundane life and dare to venture off on my own. I want to recapture my youth and have the freedom to do as I please.
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