Happy 4th July! Celebrate your independence.

Today I am not writing about my business.

As I sit in my office, the phones quiet for a change, I have a little time to reflect on a few things.

I have lived in the United States for nearly thirty years, almost two thirds of my life to date. My entire adult working life has been spent here although I have been lucky enough to travel with my work to a variety of different countries. As a business owner I work many more hours than the 'national average' to pursue my dream. I am not alone.

These have been challenging times for many of us both personally and professionally and I am no exception. In recent years the loss of parents, family illness, the economic downturn and trouble from quarters you would least expect have all taken their turn front and center in my life. We all have those tales of tough luck but there are times when, no matter how dark our own horizon appears to be, we are reminded that there is someone else near to us that is much worse off. Somehow it helps to put things in perspective.

Independence Day is particularly interesting to me as a Brit abroad. We all know what happend more than 200 years ago and through the trouble and the strife a new, exciting and vibrant country was born. A nation that would endure its fair share of challenges as it evolved and became a super power, a global powerhouse that everyone could look up to and many could only dream of what it would be like to live in a place where anything was possible. All you had to do was work hard, be diligent about your responsibilities and you could create a better life for you and your family. That image has been hit hard in recent years but this is a resilient nation that is bound and determined to continue to grow and evolve as a leader should, keeping that dream alive for generations to come.

In spite of everything I am one of the lucky few to be living that dream. I am pursuing my chosen career path and have been my own boss for almost as long as I have been working. The first years of my professional life I worked alongside my father, my personal hero, and learnt all I could from someone who had spent a lifetime in the music and entertainment industry and had seen great success. I also got to care for him in his final days and repay him in some small way for the many gifts he gave me.

Perhaps this is more appropriate as a Thanksgiving Blog. It really has little to do with the day to day activities of my business so maybe it should be a personal blog. Then again, if it hadn't been for some brave souls who said "Enough!" and shook the status quo, took a chance and forged out on their own against almost insurmountable odds that my fellow countrymen could muster I wouldn't be here today enjoying the fruits of my labor and having the strength and ability to face my challenges head on. So in some ways it is a business blog.

On this Independence Day I am grateful for my personal independence...my freedom to follow my dreams and share my successes and failures with my family, my ability to help people in some small way by providing them with a moment, albeit brief, with music and entertainment that brightens their life.

Remember the spirit that got us to this place and keep it alive in everything you do. This is just one of the days we set aside to celebrate that spirit. Thanksgiving will be upon us before we know it and we can share it with family and friends. Memorial Day, the most somber of all, is celebrated in Great Britain on November 11 as Armistice Day, the day the Allies signed the treaty that would end the bloodshed of the "War to End All Wars", World War 1. Just twenty years later Europe was torn apart again and then the rest of the world followed suit. All these days resonate with similar sentiment, remembering sacrifice, celebrating human spirit and casting an eye to a future of promise yet to be fulfilled.

On this Independence Day I am grateful for the many gifts I have received from a truly great nation and I am proud to share in the celebration of independence, something for which many around the world can only yearn.

Happy Fourth of July!