This sums up what is coming our way ,Its unbelievable the collective ignorance of our now Government Elect.
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There have been some rumblings around the office about the future of this company, and more specifically, your job. As you know, the economy has changed for the worse and presents many challenges. However, the good news is this: The economy doesn't pose a threat to your job. What does threaten your job however, is the changing political landscape in this country.
First, while it is easy to spew rhetoric that casts employers against employees, you have to understand that for every business owner there is a back story. This back story is often neglected and overshadowed by what you see and hear. Sure, you see me park my Mercedes outside. You've seen my big home at last years Christmas party. I'm sure; all these flashy icons of luxury conjure up some idealized thoughts about my life.
However, what you see is not the whole story.
I started this company 14 years ago. At that time, I lived in a 300 square foot studio apartment for 3 years. My entire living apartment was converted into an office so I could put forth 100% effort into building a company, which by the way, would eventually employ you.
My diet consisted of Ramen noodles and mac and cheese because every dollar I spent went back into this company. I drove a rusty Toyota Corolla with a defective transmission. I didn't have time to date. Often times, I stayed home on weekends, while my friends went out drinking and partying. I was committed to building a business and knew that hard work, discipline, and sacrifice was the only way to achieve success.
While I sacrificed, my friends got jobs. They worked 40 hours a week and made a modest $50K a year and spent every dime they earned. They drove flashy cars and lived in expensive homes and wore fancy designer clothes, while I was trolling through the Goodwill store extracting any clothing item that didn't look like it was birthed in the 70's. My friends refinanced their mortgages and lived a life of luxury. I, however, did not. I put my time, my money, and my life into a business with a vision that eventually, some day, I too, will be able to afford these luxuries my friends supposedly had.
So, while you physically arrive at the office at 9am, mentally check in at about noon, and then leave at5pm, I don't. There is no "off" button for me. When you leave the office, you are done and you have a weekend all to yourself. I, unfortunately, do not have the freedom. I must continue to cultivate the business, much as a dedicated gardener must do. You, of course, only see the fruits of that garden -- the nice house, the Mercedes, the vacations... you never realize the back story and the sacrifices I made to get here, and those that I continue to make. I'm not looking for sympathy, just reciting the facts.
Now, the economy is falling apart and I, and others like me, that made all the right decisions and saved his money, are being asked to bail-out all the people who didn't. Those people that overspent their paychecks and suddenly feel entitled to the same luxuries that I earned and sacrificed for.
Yes, business ownership has it's benefits, but the price I've paid is steep and was not without its wounds.
Unfortunately, the cost of running this business, and employing you, is starting to eclipse the threshold of marginal benefit. Let me tell you why:
I am being taxed to death and the government thinks I don't pay enough. I have state taxes. Federal taxes. Property taxes. Sales and use taxes. Inventory taxes. Payroll taxes. Workers compensation taxes. Unemployment taxes. Taxes on taxes. I have to hire a tax man to manage all these taxes. Governmental mandates and regulations and all the accounting that goes with it, now occupy most of my time. On October 15th, I wrote a check to the US Treasury for $288,000 for quarterly taxes. You know what my "stimulus" check was? Zero. Nada. Zilch. Zip.
The question I have is this: Who is stimulating the economy? Me, the guy who has provided 14 people good paying jobs and serves over 2,200,000 people per year with a flourishing business? Or, the single mother sitting at home pregnant with her fifth child waiting for her next welfare check? Obviously, government feels the latter is the true economic stimulus of this country.
The fact is, if I deducted (Read: Stole) 50% of your paycheck you'd quit and you wouldn't work here. I mean, why should you? That's nuts. Who wants to get rewarded only 50% for their hard work? Well, that's my tax burden. And it is because of this, and the new burdens that are being proposed that is putting your jobs in jeopardy.
Here is what many of you don't understand ... to stimulate the economy you need to stimulate what runs the economy.
If the government suddenly mandated to me that I didn't need to pay taxes, guess what? Instead of depositing that $288,000 into the Washington black-hole, I would have spent it, hired more employees, and generated substantial economic growth. My employees would have enjoyed the wealth of that tax cut in the form of promotions and better salaries.
Business is at the heart of America, and always has been. To restart it, you must stimulate it, not kill it. Suddenly, the power brokers in Washington believe the consumers of America are the essential drivers of the American economic engine and that giving my tax money to them without any strings will stimulate the economy. Nothing could be further from the truth.
So where am I going with all this? It's quite simple.
If any new taxes are levied on me, or my company, my reaction will be swift and simple:
I will close this company down, move to another country, and retire. You see, I'm done. I'm done with a country that penalizes the productive and gives to the unproductive. My motivation to work and to provide jobs will be destroyed. Those of you who voted for "change" will find that the "change" you get will be unpalatable.
I realize that such a decision on my part will place a hardship on those of you who will be out of a job, but, you have to realize:
If you lose your job, it won't be "the economy" that did it; it will be the ill- advised governmental actions that have steamrolled the constitution, and turned this country from productive capitalism into unproductive socialism. If that happens, you can find me in the South Caribbean sitting on a beach, retired, and with no employees to worry about. Now that, as they say, is the rest of the story.
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