Building businesses, and careers, can be a lot like spring gardening. It’s thrilling when the flowers bloom, but there’s a lot of waiting and work to get there. Sometimes a rabbit gets ahold of what you’ve planted, or your spacing may have been off. It’s the little things, right?
It can be a terribly slow process. One that can’t be rushed. One where a person must anxiously wait for the literal fruits of their labor. All the while, you’re cultivating – composting – manicuring and gently grooming that garden.
For those of us with little patience, that’s harder.
At first, it’s an exciting story with a lot happening. Seedlings popping out of the ground. It’s moving quickly and there’s fresh energy that surrounds us.
But then, there’s the slowdown. While there’s growth, it’s not as noticeable. Or maybe it’s not providing that same dopamine rush you felt when you first started your entrepreneurial journey. You might even feel a little bogged down with employee issues, paperwork and the not-so-fun stuff. That part is hard. That part is called growing pains. That part is where you must leave the seedlings firmly planted and practice patience.
That part is what derails some, and we must be keenly aware not to let that happen.
So how do we keep the garden alive and thriving? There’s probably not one answer that works for every individual or every journey. Maybe that’s the value of holding this book in your hands, this month. We hope we’re a resource that helps you capture some of the varying strategies other successful leaders have used. Gardening tips for businesses that worked, and some that didn’t. An almanac, of sorts, if you will.
For every stage of growth, you will no doubt face new issues in your professional garden. What works at the entry-level phase won’t, necessarily, when you reach the C-suite phase. And, what worked for a team of one will be impossible when you have a team of 50 — with varying degrees of responsibilities.
In this issue, you will find industry and community-shaping experts. For example, the inspiring story of Shirl Penney, chief executive officer and founder of Dynasty Financial Partners, in St. Petersburg. Penney knows how to nurture a flourishing garden. He’s been doing it, and growing it, for years. And the sun shines brightly on his garden, where he boldly chose to move his headquarters, six short years ago.
In addition, TBBW caught up with Jim Shimberg, one of the pioneering minds behind the development of Water Street Tampa – another curated garden project – to talk about his current work with the Euclid Group and how it’s got some big growth plans for the Tampa market.
And of course, don’t miss our Women Who Win. You’ll find amazing profiles of women who have done it all and seen it all. Those who have uplifted others and grown themselves, by doing so. They are hunters, gatherers and leaders. They are women shaping our great community’s future, one garden at a time.
It’s been said: “Flowers are restful to look at, they have neither emotions nor conflicts.” Refer to this when faced with those employee issues, to recenter yourself. Quite literally, take time to smell the roses.
Let your garden grow and realize that the weeds are just unloved flowers. Love them, either into the fray or out the door – where they may grow better elsewhere.
In the spring, at the end of the day, we should smell like dirt. Because “to forget how to dig into the earth and tend to the soil is to forget ourselves.” Get in there people, dig in, and remember what drives you, what drives your journey, what drove you to plant this garden in the first place. And then, meticulously care for it.
As Audrey Hepburn once said, “to plant a garden is to believe in tomorrow.” Here’s to believing in tomorrow. Believing in ourselves. Believing in an amazing future for the Tampa Bay region and even better, brighter, days ahead for us all.
With love from my garden,
Bridgette Bello
Planter, CEO & Publisher
Tampa Bay Business & Wealth