Since joining the team of LIBA in October 2019 I have been fortunate to learn more about our history and how we came to be. Our founders had a vision to be the voice of small business and to be bold in their approach to advocating for small business in Lincoln.

I recently had the good fortune to have a conversation with one of our founding members who talks of how LIBA has evolved since their first meeting. They never imagined what LIBA could grow to be or the impact LIBA may have on policies and laws impacting our local small businesses. Taking time to look back on the growth of LIBA over 43+ years, the founder commented, we were bold and sometimes ruffled some feathers, yet we were always bold. Then, as we concluded our conversation, he told me to Be Bold! I appreciate his words of encouragement and “giving me the keys” to focus our daily efforts and to Be Bold!

Since this conversation, the message of Be Bold has stuck with me. I think of our business owners in Lincoln who have built so many amazing businesses that are employing our friends and neighbors. They have created businesses from a vision to their success today. During their years as business owners, they have experienced great success and great failure, yet they continue to Be Bold! I think of the many business owners and their struggles over the past three years, yet so many of them have evolved and followed the mantra, Be Bold!

I am reminded of business owners who started their business in early 2020 or after. These business owners started a business and the world completely changed in an instant. Yet they were bold in their approach, they persevered, and have “come out the other side” and are having great success.

Sometimes in business, we get so focused on getting through each day, we can serve ourselves to take a step back and decide how we can Be Bold! There are times in business when taking the next step or making a bold move is very scary. We agonize over decisions of how our business may evolve and take on a new project, offer a new service, expand our business, or maybe buy another business. These are tough, bold decision. For a community to grow and evolve, our business community must have a vision for the future. Sometimes this vision will require us to Be Bold!

As we think about the rest of 2023 and look to 2024, I am reminded of some great minds I have been fortunate to work with and their encouragement to think differently, plan differently, or even boldly ask the question, what would you do if money wasn’t an issue. This helps us to think differently and consider changes and evolution in our business to grow and evolve.

Be Bold! Two simple words spoken to me, yet having a strong impact on how I think moving forward. Over the course of the next several months I know it will be a challenge at times to Be Bold. Yet it is incumbent on ourselves to serve our community and our business in a way that we are bold and think to the future.

What will you do over the next year or more to Be Bold?