En route to the event, I received a life lesson. While in traffic, two little boys approached a female driver at the intersection to wipe her glass (someting very typical in our society, and at times can be a nuisance). All glammed up ready to "Dare to Care" the lady proceeded to have hysterics about the boys touching her glass, wound down her window to rebuke them and proceeded to wind up her her window. Amidst all of that, I honked my horn, called the boys over and gave them something, so that their effort would not be in vain. In front of me the little boys split their reward.
Now, I am not quick to judge, and at times have been guilty of behaving like the above mentioned woman, but last night called my attention to something higher than that. Several Jamaicans came together last night to achieve a common purpose and assist the needy. The same philanthropic spirit that resonated last night, would be oh so profound if continued past that. Sir Richard Branson in his book - "Screw Business as Usual", has called for corporate entitities to incorporate making a positive impact as a part of their core.
In Jamaica I have also witnessed it with the creation of positions of Corporate Social Responsibility, and the establishment of several foundations. I would like to make a call to all Jamaicans to instil a civic duty and responsibility as part of our core.
To me these institutions and roles resemble the lady in the SUV "all glammed up" to support the cause of the day, yet ignoring the base of the people.These institutions are only part of the collective, and we all have a role to play in bringing about the positive changes in JA. We have several needy people, and needy institutions, and the reward does not only have to be in cash, but in kind.What a difference it would be if we all extended our hand in varying directions, so that we could all share in the rewards.
Jamaica has on overwhelming spirit of entrepreneurism. On every corner we have someone selling something, and every day another business opens, hopefully destined to succeed. How often do we take the time to extend a word of advice or renegotiate a business deal when things have gone awry. Do we ever ask how business is going for the guy who is selling phone cases, or suggest to him another location where he could possibly get more sales. Or even to go on rotation at a variety of intersectons :). I wonder if the banks would ever propose a bad debt amnesty on principal similar to the tax amnesty introduced by the previous government, so that they too can recover some of their losses and people who are willing to clear their debt take advantage of the situation. That may make it feasible for them to offer interest rates that people can actually afford to pay and make a profit for themsleves.
The truth of the matter is that we are all caught up in our own lives, that we fail to provide the adequate support our businesses need in order to thrive. We all need some guidance, and often times we make mistakes. So instead of treating our businesses like the misguided teenager who has become pregnant with uncertainty, and shutting them out, we should take the time to nourish our business sector, so that they too can strive, and employ and export. Would hope as Jamaican's we rally around our businesses formal and informal, to equip them with the tools and the knowledge they need to ride the waves of starting up.
No comments:
Post a Comment