It was exactly one week before Christmas, and it was a beautiful Minnesota winter day. I just pulled into the small community of Grove City which lies on the northern border of our region. On this particular day I was on an odyssey of sorts; I was busy trying to wrap up all my unfinished business with some clients while also picking up some last minute gifts for some of our program partners. I had reached my next stop…Sweet Promotions!
As I walked in the door I quickly noticed a long line of boxes neatly stacked down the middle of the floor – boxes of freshly made, hand-crafted candies waiting for UPS to pick up before the end of the day. I looked up and noticed Bob back in the kitchen – he motioned me back. Bob is one of those guys…a happy, jolly fellow with an infectious personality who must have a thousand friends – it seems he is always happy to see me. “Come on back”, he said with a big grin on his face, “you came at just the right time; I’ve got a job for you”!
He handed me the big wooden spoon… “Here, you’ve done this before, take care of this while we talk”! I started stirring while Bob stood there, hands on his hips ready to give me my next lesson on life! You see, Bob is what I call an Encore Entrepreneur, a seasoned gentleman who left his original career in Radio (he owned his own station) to follow his passion. He’s no ordinary guy, he’s got a gift to gab, he’s a terrific sales person and he has a passion for really good food. In fact, he is such a good salesman, that you might say he could sell Lutefisk in July! An amazing combination to be sure; you might even say he has the right recipe…a healthy dose of experience, toss in some passion, combined with his gift of sales and you’ve got something pretty special.
We’ve recently kicked off a new program called Encore Entrepreneurship, an opportunity especially designed for those seasoned adults who want to follow their passion during their next phase of life…an encore of sorts. Throughout our region we’ve found that older adults have wisdom, conviction and a lifetime of experiences and skills that they have developed over time; an amazing combination…and one that we feel in many cases has a great opportunity for success. You too could be our next Encore Entrepreneur and join Bob on his journey by following your passion.
Kurt Thompson is a Program Officer at the Southwest Initiative Foundation where he leads the Microloan and Entrepreneurship Programs. He also serves as business coach and mentor to small businesses by offering one-on-one technical assistance to loan clients.
photo credit: The Written Geek™
