Celebrating Independence

I've been telling people for years that, apart from technology, there's nothing new in business - we've been doing business for thousands of years. This point was reinforced recently when I visited Pompeii, the city in Italy that was buried by the eruption of Mount Vesuvius in 79 A.D.

What was most striking to me about the city was the feeling that this was a city that could function as well today as it did nearly two thousand years ago. There were streets and sidewalks, pipes providing running water to the homes and fountains, houses with mosaic floors and courtyards and beautiful frescoes on the walls, and even shops selling that period's version of fast food. It was clear that this city wasn't created as a government project. The houses, the shops and the commerce were the result of people doing business with people. It was thriving and expanding at the time because of that commerce.

As taught in school, history seems to focus on the rise and fall of civilizations based on military prowess and the exercise of power. Yet, a large part of any people's strength is the accumulated wealth of commerce and its ability to finance acquisition and expansion. When broad economic forces control the decision-making, civilizations seem to thrive. As the decision-making and power migrate to fewer and fewer entities, progress seems to slow and civilizations seem to stagnate.

People still do business with people. They constantly declare their independence by the decisions they make about where they spend their money. The United States began when we decided how we would spend our money and how our government should treat us. I think those two factors are inextricably linked.

Here's to our independence.

Dave Ferguson is a coach and the owner of Lake County Business Coaching, Inc., a coaching firm dedicated to helping people in business become extraordinary, to realize their dreams by achieving their goals. More information is available at http://www.LakeCountyBusinessCoaching.com

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