He grew up in a middle class home—lower middle class, to tell the truth.
In 2005, he found himself working at a web hosting company, where he was part of a group who thought they could do it better. They had patentable ideas, a philosophy of innovation, automation, and empowering their customers and employees.
So stable jobs and benefits were left behind. Risks were taken, mortgages and credit cards were maxed out. Possessions were sold. Recreational activities and weekends were sacrificed, and many of the kids’ soccer and baseball games were missed. They made their first sale in January 2006, and survived and prospered through the Great Recession. Fast forward to the present, and they employ 150 people in high-income jobs where their employees are learning skills for the innovation economy.
In 2010, they sold a share of ownership to a private equity firm. They’re all still at work, doing all the same things they were doing—creating jobs, innovating, delivering valuable services to their customers.
They were not lucky or fortunate. They took risks, worked hard and overcame adversity. They cobbled together $120 million of equipment lease financing from numerous sources over the years to operate and grow.
This week they heard from their accountants. In his case, on Monday the federal government is going to demand a little more than one-third of his 2010 income. One-third.
And yesterday, he heard his President say even THAT is not enough—that the solution to our country’s financial problems is to demand even more of him.
He can’t help but wonder, “How much is fair? For all the extra hours, lost weekends, lost family time, risky decisions like leaving a stable job for a startup--for one-third of all that time, I was doing it for the government. A government that has no clue about how to manage the money they extract from me.”
He can’t help but wonder. Neither can I.