Could the Wall Street Occupiers Become the Next Generation of Entrepreneurs?

(Originally for the Providence Journal 10/08/11)

Steve Jobs, the co-founder of Apple Computer, epitomized the American spirit of self-reliance and entrepreneurship. He was an iconic entrepreneur who had great vision, resourcefulness and perseverance. His passing should give us pause to consider if the American entrepreneurial spirit has died along with him.

While many today are waiting for the government to create jobs, blaming one political party or the other, I wonder what’s happened to our spirit of self-reliance and entrepreneurship? Why are there more people protesting the lack of jobs than there are people trying to create jobs?

What do the protesters really want? Who are they blaming for their lot in life? Is it the suits, the politicians or the lack of social justice? I guess it’s a lot easier to create a sign than it is to create a job. And, it appears easier to blame others than it is to take personal responsibility for one’s own future.

If the Occupy Wall Street protesters spent less time on social engineering and more time on mechanical and electrical engineering, the private sector would be creating millions of exciting new jobs. And if they redirected their anger away from Wall Street and channeled their collective energies to Main Street, perhaps they could launch thousands of new profitable small business ventures.

However, the occupiers believe it’s the government’s responsibility to fix the economy, redistribute wealth and legislate what they demand as “social justice.” I think that’s what Portugal, Italy, Greece and Spain tried. Look at Southern Europe now. Is this what the protesters want?

Maybe the occupiers should consider creating and managing more social enterprises? These profit-making businesses are formed by passionate people who support social causes. The late Paul Newman founded Newman’s Own for just that purpose.

These social ventures could create millions of new jobs for those who are passionate about helping the less fortunate. Nice concept – making profits to help people. Everyone wins, and government isn’t involved. But that’s a lot of hard work and unfortunately it seems more popular today just to blame the rich, call for more taxes and engage in class warfare. 

You also hear the occupiers demanding fairness for the “working class.” I wonder if that includes the millions of small business owners who work long hours, invest their personal life savings and create most of the jobs in America. No pensions, no seniority and no job security, just the pride of owning their own business and experiencing the satisfaction of earned success.

I don’t believe there are many small business owners among the occupiers. They’re too busy working long hours, worrying about making payroll and finding new customers. Most entrepreneurs are not waiting for government to solve their problems; they’d just like government to get out of their way. It might also be helpful if government would stop treating business owners as “revenue generators” and begin treating them as job creators.

America needs a new generation of entrepreneurs. These are the people, like Edison and Jobs, who see opportunity, take action, sometimes succeed and often fail. But they rarely give up. What we don’t need is another round of government bailouts, tax increases or stimulus packages to create false prosperity.

So here’s the plan. Listen up Wall Street occupiers. Why don’t you occupy the vacant store fronts and office buildings with exciting new business ventures? Get in the game, become entrepreneurial and work to create your own wealth. You can give most of it away to worthy causes if you choose. It’s a perfect win-win solution.

With unemployment stuck above 9%, many of the jobs in the future will come from new small businesses. So let’s ramp up the next generation of entrepreneurs. Let’s encourage this generation to learn about how to run a business, to think creatively, to take risks, learn from failure and to be resourceful and resilient. Where the profit goes is up to the stakeholders.

Caution! There will be winners and losers.  Not everyone wins a trophy in the business world.  I’ve heard it said that Edison failed a thousand times before he found the right element for the incandescent light bulb, and Babe Ruth struck out more than most on his way to hit 60 home runs in a season.

Occupying your time with a new business venture seems more productive than occupying space and complaining. For those still determined to occupy the streets, consider this. You can have the best of both worlds.

There are many ventures you could consider operating to support your fellow occupiers. Protesters need porta-potties, food, folding chairs, tents, hats, sun glasses, water stations, signs, banners, bull horns, batteries to power the bull-horns and more. Think of the jobs you can create and the money you can make.

There’s nothing wrong with making a buck while expressing your first amendment rights. I would think both Edison and Jobs would tell you to go for it.