More Answers... (7/20/25 Newsletter): Business is for EVERYONE (Katherine Graham proves it)

Hi Everyone,

Here's the blog version of the Sunday Evening "More Answers..." to get a friendly boost to setup your work week! 

Remember to sign up for the newsletter for bonus material!! (https://www.askchrista.com/newsletter/) 

Blame it on the Dot-Com Bubble Burst...

Twenty-five years ago, not long after the dot-com bubble burst, those left standing continued to build wealth beyond what was once imaginable. This was  in large part because the dot-com era created a new type of market that impacted global market economies in ways not seen for a very long time, while also making the global market economy more accessible, more unified, and faster. 

Around the same time, 911 happened, as the USA rebuilt and found a new-but-still-shaky normal, more and more reality TV shows focused on survival (literally) and dysfunction, including "what it took" to be "successful" at business (which was focused on, you guessed it: survival and dysfunction). 

Oh, and the whole Enron scandal alongside of many other businesses "cooking the books," further underscoring what felt like dysfunction and survival, and the many fictional movies and TV shows that portrayed business as a cut-throat place where only those willing to play a Hunger Games strategy made it to the top...

... and here we are... hearing a lot of people claiming that they aren't a business person, when in fact-- I'm pretty sure they are, and I'd make an honest wager to prove them wrong.

"I'm Just Not Cut Out for It"

I hear this a lot. And yet, for a century people talked about the USA as a place where EVERYONE could start new, start fresh, and even start a business.

So how is it that so many people now assume-- many having never had proper exposure to business-- that they aren't cut out for it?

This is when I slowly turn and give a menacing, accusatory stare to the culture of society. 

In the backdrop of all I described above, society at large was primed to buy into the ruse of shows like "The Apprentice" (which, if you do not know yet, was a fictional show that looked real, but wasn't...). Living in post-911 vibes, still in the 80s-induced work momentum of "work hard play hard," AND finding community and a new type of social life in various online "chat rooms," society at large seemed to internalize the vast, overbearing, and exhausting signals from the outside while determining just what and how much they were capable of on the inside while slowly convincing themselves that business just wasn't for them.

Who could blame anyone for thinking that?

"Business news" talked about big box stores eating up the "mom and pop shops" (even the very term of small business made them sound outdated and "old...").

"Business news" also spoke in terms most couldn't understand while fast tickers ran across the TV screen and blitzed everyone with-- truly-- irrelevant information and figures in the form of numbers and ratios.

Gone was the most important aspect of ANY business: telling its story, giving others a chance to believe in that story, then offering ways for someone to support the story or not.

We simply let everyone else do that-- people who knew better, or so we thought. 

But We Know More Than We Think We Do...

I wrote about this last week also, and this is a major theme for Season 3-- particularly the Business Basics Series embedded in Season 3-- as I try with all my might to empower everyone to BELIEVE and KNOW they are cut out for business. It doesn't have to be a traumatic event they hold their breath for just as they take the jump into it.

It can be an easy walk into a beautiful pathway that actually offers a better life and better living... and the more people do this, then the more magnitude small businesses have.

REMEMBER: Business is not about being born with the right vocabulary or a secret MBA handshake.
It’s first and foremost about understanding people. After that, it's about understanding the value of a product or service and being able to communicate that (made much easier when you understand people).

After that it's about making decisions, prioritizing, and living with tradeoffs. Part of that is controlling the flow of money, but that's actually the easy part once you have the others in check. 

Check out Season 3 to learn more! 

BOOSTER FOR YOUR WEEK!!!

Learn the name Katherine Graham, then make her a role model...

Most of the turns in our lives are somewhat gradual-- at least, they're not so severe that we feel whiplash or need to take a moment to gain our bearings.

But we all have times when we are faced with taking a fast left or right, or when that type of turn is taken for us and we have to go with the ride (such as getting laid off, especially if it's unexpected or for no professional reasons, and plenty have felt THAT over the last 15 years, especially the last few months).

Katherine Graham is one of my role models. We don't talk about her enough. For many or most of you, this might be the first time you're hearing her name. And that's a shame, but, alas, part and parcel to my points above: we see business through the lens of culture, and culture (like fortune) favors the bold-- or at least, the most bodacious. 

Katherine Graham wasn't a business person. Until she was.
And she was remarkable... 

This week's newsletter clip is about Katherine Graham (<-- links to the documentary about her). In the meantime, I hope you enjoy Season 3's topics-- and remember, if you have a business challenge or workplace issue—Ask Christa!

See you next week!!!

With kindness,
Christa

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