The world is full of dreamers and doers. The dreamers play a key role, but without the doers, the idea never sees the light of day. Execution is vital, and having the will and the determination to execute, even when the chips are stacked against you, is the real definition of an inspirational person (in my opinion).
Let’s use a real-life example - A grinder. The hardest worker in the room. An Athlete. Entrepreneurial. Did it all on his or her own, with very little support. No, I’m not talking about the Rock. Or Jeff Bezos. Or anyone else, celebrated in pop culture. When I think of inspiration, I think about real people. People closer to me. The best example is my brother, Christopher.
We have the honor and privilege of working with Christopher and many others like him - business owners who work their ass off, preserve their capital and seek advice and support at the right time, all while delivering a quality product or service – fulfilling their dream. He never shows off or talks about himself. His integrity and work ethic are unlike anyone’s I’ve ever seen. He’s not a pretender or a phony. And he doesn’t do things to impress anyone. He works hard, keeps his head down and only strives to build the best product he can. That was his audacious dream, and he is really good at it.
I’m proud that we don’t overlook these SMEs, like most larger firms do. They are the true backbone of our economy. They create employment. They practice corporate social responsibility and strive to create long lasting support at a local level, which affects people’s lives in the community, where they live and work.
Never Quit
Personally, anyone who doesn’t quit, who pours their soul into their project, who has a genuine focus to do better and solve a problem, one who hits roadblocks yet doesn’t slow down - that person dreamt big and is winning, and they are the real inspiration. Someone who avoids the distraction, the noise and the pretenders and works with integrity and purpose, the disciplined person who is ok to eat mac and cheese for a few years so they can eat steak in the future - they inspire us and they are the people we want to support at The UnBankers.
There are more “Chris De Almeida’s” out there, than “The Rock” or “Jeff Bezos”. So, why aren’t we giving them more attention and praise? They do it with little to no help. No bankers are investing in them. No private equity firms are putting money into their projects. They leverage themselves personally to grow their business. These guys are the true inspiration and the real audacious dreamers. They are bootstrapping it all. They are generating profit despite going it alone. Their sacrifice is just as notable, if not more notable, than the big companies who have investors and plenty of capital to feed their machine. That is why we are focusing on the other dreamers who don’t have the same level of support.
We have built our firm and our mandate on helping those clients who have funded their businesses themselves for years and who are ready to move to the next level. They inspire us, so we are focusing on helping them to make it to the next stage of their business. Our lender partners share our passion and interest in helping these companies grow. We work with them directly to explore every option together to make sure these resilient, creative, and determined entrepreneurs don’t have to go it alone. The clients we seem to be helping the most lately are seeking between $2M and $10M dollars in funding, and our lenders are willing and able to support them with their request. We are excited to engage more business owners like Chris, as we feel this is where we can do the most good.
If you are a business owner, let us know how we can help you with your request, so that you may continue to grow your business and inspire others to do the same.