On the Road by Jack Kerouac is a book about his travels across the US in the late 1940s. This book really spoke to me in a way I’d never felt before. It’s about a guy and his friends who live for adventure and refuse to settle for a dull life. They’re always on the move, hungry for new experiences, and they don’t let society’s rules hold them back. They follow their dreams, even when it’s tough. The story is full of surprises and teaches you to embrace life as it comes. It’s all about action and diving headfirst into life’s adventures. This book changed my life. It inspired me to chase my own dreams, to start a business I believed in, even though I wasn’t fully ready, and to keep pushing through every challenge that came my way.
For context, I grew up in the 70’s and 80’s, when the world was far less connected and models of possibility weren’t as common. Now we have great examples of people doing their own thing and making a difference everywhere, but back then they were fewer and farther between.
To me a business is like money—nothing more than a tool. It will usually bring out what’s in you. If you’re not an evil, greedy bastard, business ownership won’t turn you into one. But if you are, you will be, whether you own a business or not.