Those of you who have read many of my previous blog entries know that I strongly believe that anyone can live their dreams so long as they work hard, stay true to themselves, treat others like they are family and be passionate – act with intelligent passion- about what you do. The dream -the American dream – of having the freedom and opportunity to do what you want and accomplish your goals is alive and well in the United States.
Every day I’m awed by the passion and hard work demonstrated by our hundreds of franchisees who operate over 1,000 Edible Arrangements locations in the United States and around the world. They inspire me to keep improving, and I hope their success and stories inspire you to maybe take the first steps of fulfilling your dreams, whether that dream is becoming an entrepreneur and opening your own business, learning a new language, going back to school, or getting involved in public service. Nothing pleases more than speaking with a new franchisee, or any business owner who stops me to talk or person I meet in my everyday life (I meet the most amazing people when I’m ordering my favorite drink at Starbucks), and learning about their background and what inspires them.
We all need inspiration and it’s available to anyone who simply takes a moment out of their busy life to look for it, listen and learn from others. I love every night, after I spend time with my young children before they go to bed, to simply read a biography of someone who has accomplished their goal, watch an informed news show such as Piers Morgan on CNN who always delves deep into the issues when interviewing a guest and always focusses on the American Dream, or read about what make people tick in reputable newspapers, such as the Wall Street Journal, NY Times or USA Today. Learning about what others are doing, what obstacles they are overcoming, recharges me every night.
So, I was humbled yesterday when a story on Edible Arrangements was featuredin USA Today as it perfectly reflected my belief that the dream is alive and well in America, and that anyone can do what my brother Kamran and I did. If my story –the Edible Arrangements story –can inspire just one person to go for their goal then it will have served its purpose. It also gave me much pleasure to see that our very first franchisee, Chris Dellamarggio, who now has multiple locations, was quoted in the article, and another one of our very best multi-unit owners, Tom Stratford (you look marevlous, Tom), was pictured in the story. Why was I so pleased? Because they both took a chance in the very beginning on a new concept to open their very first Edible Arrangements store. They both took the time to listen to their hearts and take that first step in living their dreams, knowing very well that the path before them was not yet clear or guaranteed. They were driven by the belief that they can succeed no matter what and live their dreams so long as they worked hard and were passionate about what they are doing. They found their inspiration –they and all our franchisees give me mine –and I hope you one day find yours and take that first step in living your dreams.
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