I’ve been a Rock Pusher my whole life
byvery entrepreneur stands at the bottom of a very steep hill with a very flat rock to push. I know. I’ve been there many times. And I’m standing there again now, as I write this Blog
Since I was 33 years old, I knew I was a rock pusher. Perhaps that is why I stand before you, at the bottom of yet another hill, ready and raring to go!
I have to be honest that I am not a man who has achieved great success, fame, or fortune. I am simply a man who knows that he is a rock pusher and loves to push rocks. It’s who I am and who I have allowed myself to be.
If you found this website, it’s because you most likely have a dream. Or, you’re trying to understand someone near and dear to you who is clinging to one. When we dream or pursue a goal, it’s, in a sense, like taking a rough, square rock and deciding to push it up a very steep hill. The goal is to see that dream realized and to achieve success. With that, we begin our journey and the task of pushing whatever square rock we have chosen, up the mountain, in hopes of reaching the top. In essence, we become a proverbial Rock-Pusher.
In truth, all of us, somewhere deep down inside, have a dream or a particular desire. Maybe it’s simply to dream and never actually DO. Perhaps it’s to achieve your dream. Whatever the case, you need to understand clearly in your heart, in the still quiet dark of the night, what is that you truly want, what it is that you want to do, and why it is that you want to do it.
My life started relatively normal in the corporate world. I climbed the ladder of success with the dream of reaching the top. I sincerely thought that I desired to run a company. I had to push and find some way to make a living. And, I figured that the type of success the corporate world would bring would punch my life ticket to the top. I began to find something was wrong with that picture.
While working my way up each rung of the corporate ladder, I discovered something about myself that I had never realized. I loved the challenge of creating something from nothing and identifying something that someone else was doing or creating and doing it better; or smarter. Deep inside, I began to see that I had this innate desire to push the heavy flat, square rocks of the world—uphill! I was not just a dreamer. I was a Rock Pusher.
If you looked at me today, you’d see that this decision to carry out my Rock Pusher DNA has left me scarred, bruised, and sometimes weary. The mountains I have now climbed and the rocks that I have pushed gave me the wounds and badges that I proudly wear.
My first rock was a technology that could change how you measured blood flow in the heart. It was back in the 1980s. I connected with a doctor out of Stanford University. He had a great idea. And I just knew in my heart that I was the one that could get that idea, that flat square rock, up to the top of the hill towards success. I knew I could take the idea, raise capital, turn it into a solid product, get it into the market, and then sell it!
I knew I was a sales and marketing guy, but I didn’t know how to create a business plan. I was determined, however, and so I began. I didn’t have any idea how to tackle the project. I decided to start pushing that rock. And so, I started mostly alone. That is the way a lot of Rock Pushers start. Very alone.
I was fortunate to be in what is known as Silicon Valley. In California. If you are unfamiliar with this area of the country or that particular period in our country’s history, the Valley was the place to be. Most great technological ideas or products come from that intellectually fertile mind field. Many have gone on to legendary status. Google, Apple, Facebook, Netflix, need I say more.
I started pushing, and in time, we began creating momentum. That was where I first understood the concept of Momentum and how it applied to the business world. I honestly couldn’t describe what momentum was at that time or why it mattered. We talked about it in football. You’d hear it mentioned during a game, “The momentum has shifted to the other team...” But what that truly meant and how that translated to business, I had no clue. Momentum was simply something I’d heard about briefly in high school physics.
I
would soon understand that in the land of square rocks, Momentum is a most precious commodity. And it should be placed as an asset on your balance sheet.I will write a lot about the momentum. I hope you will come to understand what it can mean for you as you start as a new business owner or entrepreneur. My goal is to show you how it is built and maintained.
I will not attempt to tell you who you are or try to push you into believing what you should do. I won’t tell you how to push your rock. What I will try to share is what I have learned along the way.
I will tell you this: everyone has it in them to start. The problem is most people don’t start.
My heart is to help you understand that you can do it. You can take this hill. And I may have a lesson or two along the way that I can share in how you want to go about it.
I am so excited. I hope you enjoy your journey.