Paradise By The Desktop Light

Paradise.  I thought it would be different . . .

When I was a kid, I heard how being the boss made your life – different – somehow.  That when you finally achieved that magical, almost mystical, position the world became a different place in which to live.

I listened as the adults talked about how the boss where they worked, didn’t!  That they sat around and had people, you know, employee’s, doing everything for them.  When they snapped their fingers, coffee appeared on the desk.  If they wanted to play golf, the sun even listened and came out!

As a young kid, I thought that would be a really great lifestyle.  A regular paradise, it seemed.

When I had to drag out hay bales in the snow or break the ice in the horse tanks before school, I would dream of a different world.  I would study hard, get into a college/university that taught you how to be a boss and tell SOMEONE ELSE to freeze their tookus off doing this.  Yep, I had plans!

The best-laid plans of mice and men often go . . .

To hell in a handbasket?

I did study hard  I got an Engineering degree, studied Business Management, even pursued a career in Law for a time.  But I never did find that class that taught you how to be The Boss.

My dreams and plans?  Shattered.  Paradise, it seemed, was not mine to see.  Even Meatloaf lied when he said I could find it by the dashboard lights!

Fate.  A cruel mistress, or?

Fast forward a few decades.

A twist of fate propelled me from a middle management employee making $60K a year to “The Boss” in 1990 when circumstances changed and I decided to open a business.  Was I totally prepared for what I would face?  Hell no!  Remember, I missed that ‘be the boss’ class!

And just to bury my childhood aspirations even further, no matter how many times I snapped my fingers, coffee NEVER appeared on my desk!

About that class . . .

Recently, I was in a meeting with the Dean of a local College.  I asked her, facetiously, “Do you offer a business class to teach kids how to be the boss?”

She laughed, a lot, and asked if I wanted to write the curriculum and teach it.  Yeah, fun times.  Until I got home and thought about it.

I could easily come up with a million reasons why someone would NOT want to be the boss.

Long hours, endless meetings.  How I have put on almost a million miles going to trade shows, seminars, and MORE meetings, only to come back and wonder if I really accomplished anything.  The calls at night when things go wrong, employee issues, board meetings, accounting problems, and the list goes on.  Pressures I could only have seen in nightmares as a child are now part of my daily routine.  Teach a class?  Seriously?

But I also know all these things, combined with the people I have worked with, learned from, and offered help along the way . . . IS the “Boss 101” class!  There is no way to teach it, it comes from experience.  No, I may never be a College Professor teaching business, but I live it!

With all these reasons to NOT do it, then why do I?  It’s simple.  As Lady Gaga says in Million Reasons, you only need ONE GOOD ONE to stay.

Paradise, it may not be where you once thought it was.

As I sit at my desk covered in stacks of papers I need to tend to, it can easily seem overwhelming.  It just never ends.

But at 4:00 in the morning, when I have time to think, I can look back on what I have been through.  A kid raised on a ranch with dreams he had no clue how to accomplish – did.

In addition, I know there is so much MORE to be done.  THAT, ladies and gentlemen, IS my ‘one good reason’ to do this.  What does the future hold?

So, I intend to Marry The Night (yes, another video.) . . .

Because I did find that elusive paradise I sought.  No, it wasn’t in some class, on the dashboard, in magic coffee cups, or sunny golf games (never learned to play).

It comes from a darkened office, by the light of the desktop monitor.

Find yours.

 

.

homage-to-the-sponge

With Sincere Thanks

Richard Taylor

“The only limits we have are those you impose upon yourself. Remove the limits!”

Follow my current adventures on Twitter

(PS: I am learning Linux, using RaspberryPi and 3D printers, to build a robot that, one day, WILL bring me that cup of coffee!)

17 thoughts to “Paradise By The Desktop Light”

  1. Boy did you ever nail this on the head, I was in a position as general manager of a very popular tax service franchise, worked there 19 years always promised that when time came and he sell it that i would be taken care of for a long time since I helped build the business from 1 office to 26 with 12.8 million dollar a year income.
    Time came and went i naturally never got a dam thing and the I went to work for my self no one brings me coffee even the wife. Did have the world on a string but it seems someone somewhere lit a match and the string disintegrated

  2. Awesome post, Richard!! I never wanted to be the boss, they always seemed to have too many irons in the fire. I just wanted to be independent… but here I am the “boss” of all I see.. and nobody brings me coffee either. Thanks for letting people know that there is more to living than being the boss… you have to find what makes you happy in being the boss of your own world!!

    1. There is so much more to life than making money. Sure, you can do with money than without, but that should never be the focus. See what lies beyond that, and how you can make positive changes.

      We each have to determine what it is we truly seek, and then do it. Even if you have to make your own coffee!

      Thanks, Renee!

      1. No no Richard,

        You make the money so you can live and not worry about money
        so you can enjoy life.

        However, on the flip side, a broke person could live like a millionaire
        if they don’t have grand desires. not living in debt on a credit card.

    2. Renee,

      You recall that support ticket I sent to you while back, you know,
      the one that stated, run the business like you on it.

      These newbies are looking for direction to prosperity.

  3. That was a fun read! I agree Paradies is different for everybody, and everybody has to find it for themselves and probably don’t find it where they think it is.
    I brought coffee to my girlfriend this morning and she’s not the boss… well, maybe she is 🙂

    1. Yes, Xarah, she IS the boss! 🙂

      I have traveled a long way in life to find that what I really want to do is where I started. Building new things, learning, listening to others, and looking to the future. I am not ‘done’ in life, only just beginning again!

      Everyone can find their own paradise. Make sure what it is you seek is what YOU want, not what others tell you it should be. Only then can the search be filled.

      Have a great day Xarah!

  4. Really Richard,

    You idolize Lady Gaga that is into Satanic Rituals that performed
    occult symbolism during the Super bowl.

    While on the roof, a “thousand points of light” behind her.
    The points of light then align into two pillars, Red and Blue.
    Red and Blue pillars of Freemasonry.
    Then she jumps into the stadium. Fallen angel symbolism.
    She then lands in “hell”. All red, and smoky.
    Notice the two giant pillars behind her again. Jachin and Boaz of Freemasonry.
    See the giant half buried pentagrams?
    See the tesseraeted floor?
    Transhumanist anthem belted out.
    666 hand/eye symbols flashed by her, and her dancers.
    She is raised up on YET ANOTHER double pillar.
    GHW Bush flipping the coin.
    GHW Bush mentioned Thousand Points of Light dozens of times in the 90’s while on his speaking tour called “THE NEW WORLD ORDER”.

  5. Hey Richard,

    ” Quote ” I did study hard I got an Engineering degree, studied Business Management, even pursued a career in Law for a time. But I never did find that class that taught you how to be The Boss. ” Unquote ”

    You see the problem here.
    You got an Engineering degree, then you pursued a career in law.

    I was listening to the radio show host Dave Ramsey couple days ago,
    he had a caller that was an Engineer, he was 41 years of age.

    He and wife combined income, $600,000.00 a year, they bank $100,000.00
    a year in savings, plus he has six ( 6 ) rental properties and a home mortgage
    of $540,000.00

    Plus, he has tucked away $40,000 thus far on college funds for the kids.

    Dave Ramsey told him to stay the course he was on and within 7 years,
    he would have his $1.2 million dollars of debt mortgages paid off.

    How do you learn to be a boss?

    When you put yourself out there with your back against the wall, on the edge
    of the plank and you have no choice but make the business grow.

    Having coffee brought to you is a simple solution, hire a personal assistant.

    1. Rod,

      You seem to be making an ‘assumption’ that things didn’t work out so well over that career track. I never said that – just that education alone did not prepare me for where I am today. It was a contributing factor, without a doubt, but experiences gained (some as a direct result of that education) played a significant role as well.

      We all make choices in life. In the end, we can but hope we made the right ones. I walked away from the ‘corporate ladder’ due to the choices I made based upon what I thought was right at the time. Now, almost 30 years later, I do not regret those decisions. I feel that I have achieved more, and not just monetarily, than I could have had I stayed.

      In the end, we all travel our own path. What works for me, may not for others. And that is what makes this exciting. Seeing how we can each take our strengths and manifest those into something ‘more’ than what we had.

      Success has a different meaning to everyone. All I want to do is point out that, with some personal initiative, it can be had. Not everyone wants, or needs, millions in the bank when they die.

      You are right, though, that only through facing challenges and moving ahead can you find your own success/paradise. I like where I am today, and where I see myself headed now. That, alone, is what matters. 🙂

      As far as coffee goes, I prefer to find my own solutions. I have had assistants. I was more likely to get THEM coffee, though. Different strokes and all that.

    1. Thanks, Barbara!

      School taught me how to calculate expense, plot a radius, and the difference between civil and tort law. Experience taught me how to handle customers. 😉

      I thought I would do something ‘different’ this time on the blog. I enjoyed this format, so you may see more. Glad you like it!

      As always, I appreciate your comments.

      1. If you don’t have reserve capital to carry a business,
        then you’re depending on current business to cover
        payroll, that is, if you have employees.

        If you’re self employed, with no helpers / employees,
        then you have to be the best salesman for the business.

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