- Don’t judge others by their background, ethnicity, education, or job situation
- Help others to succeed when you can
- Support education and help make it available to all
- Support the arts (music, theater, museums, etc.)
Seeing as today is Father’s Day I thought that I would start by writing about my father and see where we go from there…
My father passed away in 1993 after a long bout with Parkinson’s disease. He was an intelligent and personable man who was a great salesman and made friends with everyone he met. He grew up in the early part of the 20th century in Erie, Pennsylvania, the 6th of 10 children.
He did well in school and played on the high school basketball team. He received a full 4-year scholarship to Alleghany College (PA) but couldn’t take advantage of it because he had to go to work to help support the family. I think that although he didn’t regret his decision that he still wished he had been able to continue his education and made us understand the value of learning. Growing up both he and my mom were always reading and had many books in the house. They gave that love of learning and also of social awareness to the 4 of us kids and all of us went to and finished college.
My father followed his parents and siblings out to California in 1933, settling in Santa Monica (Los Angles County), looking for a better life. He met my mother a few years later and they were married in 1939. They remained married (thru sickness & health as well good times & bad times) until my father’s death.
I get my entrepreneurial spirit from my dad (and mom). My parents bought a business where my father was working when I was just a toddler and their business supported many people in addition to our family. I grew up in that entrepreneurial atmosphere knowing that I would also want to work for myself when I got older. I have been a management consultant for many years with a few shorter stints working for other people but I always end up back working for myself. Today I am continuing on that path by learning how to do internet marketing in the Partnership to Success program.
Overall the items below are the most important things I learned from my parents and that I still incorporate into my daily life:
Share on Facebook Tweet (Share on Twitter) Share on Linkedin Share on Google+ Pin it (Share on Pinterest)