I got this forwarded in email today:
To All My Valued Employees,
There have been some rumblings around the office about the future of this
company, and more specifically, your job. As you know,
The economy has changed for the worse and presents many challenges. However,
the good news is this: The economy doesn't pose a threat to your job. What does
threaten your job however, is the changing political landscape in this country.
However, let me tell you some little tidbits of fact which might help
you decide what is in your best interests.
First, while it is easy to spew rhetoric that casts employers
against employees, you have to understand that for every business
owner there is a back story. This back story is often neglected and
overshadowed by what you see and hear. Sure, you see me park my Mercedes
outside. You've seen my big home at last years Christmas party. I'm sure; all
these flashy icons of luxury conjure up some idealized thoughts about my life.
However, what you don't see is the back story.
I started this company 28 years ago. At that time, I lived in a 300
Square foot studio apartment for 3 years. My entire living apartment was
converted into an office so I could put forth 100% effort into building a
company, which by the way, would eventually employ you.
My diet consisted of Ramen Pride noodles because every dollar I
spent went back into this company. I drove a rusty Toyota Corolla
with a defective transmission. I didn't have time to date. Often times, I
stayed home on weekends, while my friends went out **94** and partying. In
fact, I was married to my business -- hard work, discipline, and sacrifice.
Meanwhile, my friends got jobs. They worked 40 hours a week and
made a modest $50K a year and spent every dime they earned. They drove flashy
cars and lived in expensive homes and wore fancy designer clothes. Instead of
hitting the Nordstrom's for the latest hot fashion item, I was trolling through
the discount store extracting any clothing item that didn't look like it was
birthed in the 70's. My friends refinanced their mortgages and lived a life of
luxury. I, however, did not. I put my time, my money, and my
life into a business with a vision that eventually, some day, I too, will be
able to afford these luxuries my friends supposedly had.
So, while you physically arrive at the office at 9am, mentally
check in at about noon, and then leave at 5pm, I don't. There is no "off"
button for me. When you leave the office, you are done and
you have a weekend all to yourself. I unfortunately do not have the
freedom. I eat, and breathe this company every minute of the day. There is no
rest. There is no weekend. There is no happy hour. Every day this business is
attached to my hip like a 1 year old special-needs ch1ld. You, of course,
only see the fruits of that garden -- the nice house, the Mercedes, the
vacations... you never realize the back story and the sacrifices I've made.
Now, the economy is falling apart and I, the guy that made all
the right decisions and saved his money, have to bail-out all the
people who didn't. The people that overspent their paychecks suddenly feel
entitled to the same luxuries that I earned and sacrificed a decade of my life
for.
Yes, business ownership has it's benefits but the price I've
paid is steep and not without wounds.
Unfortunately, the cost of running this business, and employing
you, is starting to eclipse the threshold of marginal benefit and let
me tell you why:
I am being taxed to death and the government thinks I don't pay
enough. I have state taxes. Federal taxes. Property taxes. Sales and
use taxes. Payroll taxes. Workers compensation taxes. Unemployment taxes. Taxes
on taxes. I have to hire a tax man to manage all these taxes and then guess
what? I have to pay taxes for employing him. Government mandates and
regulations and all the accounting that goes with it, now occupy most of my
time. On Oct 15th, I wrote a check to the US Treasury for $288,000 for
quarterly taxes.
You know what my "stimulus" check was? Zero. Nada.
Zilch.
The question I have is this: Who is stimulating the economy? Me,
the guy who has provided 14 people good paying jobs and serves over 2,200,000
people per year with a flourishing business? Or, the single mother sitting at
home pregnant with her fourth ch1ld waiting for her next welfare check?
Obviously, government feels the latter is the economic stimulus of this country.
The fact is, if I deducted (Read: Stole) 50% of your paycheck
you'd quit and you wouldn't work here. I mean, why should you? That's nuts. Who
wants to get rewarded only 50% of their hard work? Well, I agree which is why
your job is in jeopardy.
Here is what many of you don't understand ... to stimulate the
economy you need to stimulate what runs the economy. Had suddenly government
mandated to me that I didn't need to pay taxes, guess what? Instead of
depositing that $288,000 into the Washington black-hole, I would have spent it,
hired more employees, and generated substantial economic growth.
My employees would have enjoyed the wealth of that tax cut in the form of
promotions and better salaries. But you can forget it now.
When you have a **98** man on the verge of death, you don't
defibrillate and shock his thumb thinking that will bring him back to
life, do you? Or, do you defibrillate his heart? Business is at the heart of
America and always has been. To restart it, you must stimulate it, not kill it.
Suddenly, the power brokers in Washington believe the poor of America are the
essential drivers of the American economic engine. Nothing could be further
from the truth and this is the type of change you can keep.
So where am I going with all this?
It's quite simple.
If any new taxes are levied on me, or my company, my reaction
will be swift and simple. I fire you. I fire your co-workers. You can
then plead with the government to pay for your mortgage, your SUV, and your
ch1ld's future. Frankly, it isn't my problem any more.
Then, I will close this company down, move to another country,
and retire. You see, I'm done. I'm done with a country that penalizes
the productive and gives to the unproductive. My motivation to work and to
provide jobs will be destroyed, and with it, will be my citizenship.
So, if you lose your job, it won't be at the hands of the
economy; it will be at the hands of a political hurricane that swept
through this country, steamrolled the constitution, and will have changed its
landscape forever. If that happens, you can find me sitting on a beach,
retired, and with no employees to worry about....
Signed, Your boss