Last Thursday was the “end” of the pandemic, with the Federal government ending the official public health emergency. As our masks come off and we all breathe a somewhat collective sigh of relief, I do that even more so, with my husband’s stable employment for the past 20 months.
When I started my own business nearly 18 years ago, I remember thinking how “unsteady” my paycheck was, and how it felt so “risky” to work for myself. My husband was the one with the “stable” job. I was trying to give us additional income with work I enjoyed that allowed me to be more available to my family.
And then I watched my husband get laid off from not one or two jobs, but three different jobs over a period of four years – and mostly during the pandemic. Suddenly, I became the breadwinner of the family. With an unexpected kitchen renovation due to mold during the first 9 months of the pandemic, it was not an easy time.
But I’m happy to say that I was able to support my family during this time and came out of it much stronger, and with a realization that I now live by.
The most stable income you can make is the one you make yourself.
Working for someone else, you can be laid off at a moment’s notice – as my husband was – for apparently any minor reason. I realized that I could work harder and smarter and make more money when I needed to – and could also scale back when I needed to.
I think it’s why it’s been so inspiring to capture the stories of several family foundations recently. These foundations were born out of the enormous success of a family business, typically started by one person with the dream of a better life.
They were self-made, creating businesses from the ground up, and often with family members continuing to grow the business even larger. With hard work, patience, and most of all, perseverance, they had great success. And with the tremendous resources they generated, they decided to give back to the communities they cared about and who supported them.
Today, I’m featuring the Shear Family Foundation. The business that began their journey started with one man, a blind horse, and a wagon. Though the Shears are very private about their giving, they created this 5-minute version of their hour-long legacy film as a way for future partners and grantees to get to know them, their passions, and their determination. I hope it inspires you.
If you’re looking for even more inspiration, check out this video by New York Times best-selling author Angela Duckworth on Grit: The Power of Passion and Perseverance.
