First Things First 3

Building your own dream is hard work. It requires your undivided
attention. If you are busy building someone else’s dream,
you will not have the time or energy to dedicate to your own. Let
me explain: if your only motivation is to punch a clock for 40, 50,
60 or even 80 hours a week, can you or will you have the energy
or focus to carry out a meaningful dream? By no means would I
suggest you not retain your employment, for we all have to make a
living to meet our family needs and responsibilities. Sacrifice is the
name of the game, as you may need to cut back on spending and
reduce hours on the job in order to go back to school to obtain the
degree or certification that can open the window of opportunity to
fast track your dream.
If that dream involves starting your own business, the countless
hours you invest on a job will have to shift to the single purpose
– “owning my very own business.” You need to ask yourself a
variety of questions, including:
• How can I penetrate the market with my idea?
• From where will I receive funding?
• Can I operate a home-based business to reduce overhead?
You will need to invest time to research all avenues in delivering
that desired objective. There is a radio personality in New
Orleans who ends his program with this quote: “Live well and do
good work.” I think dreaming and working toward the fulfillment
of a dream is living well and doing good work.
Devin Oten
DO Enterprises
www.DevinOten.com
Writer, Public Speaker and Philanthropist