June 23rd is the second anniversary of my father, Jerry Libava's death. He succumbed to lung cancer in 2007. He started his self-employment trek in 1990, after being a victim of corporate downsizing at Physicians Weight Loss Centers, where he opened over 300 franchises.........
He founded International Franchise Development, did some consulting, and in 1991, joined a young franchise brokerage firm out of San Diego. He was one of the original members of that group, and contributed lots of ideas, along with other great franchise folks like Gordon Dupries, Rick Eggleton, and Joan Young.
He was an early pioneer of the business type that I am a part of, franchise consulting and brokering. Our business model is one in which we match people that are interested in becoming franchise/small business owners to opportunities that are a fit, based on a lot of different criteria, and then we receive a "finder's fee" by the franchise companies we work with if our candidate ends up purchasing a franchise. There is no-charge to the prospective franchise owners for our service.
I joined my dad's firm in 2001, after becoming a victim of downsizing myself, from a management position in the world of automotive franchising.
Dad taught me a lot of things, and I want to share 5 of them;
- Stand up for what you believe in
- Be ethical in all your dealings
- When presenting opportunities to people, remember that it doesn't matter what you like. What opportunities make sense for them?
- It's OK to be a little crazy every now and then
- Don't do something half-assed
I try to make him proud every day.
{And some rather strong thoughts about the group that we used to be with}
The 5 traits you mentioned are very simple yet powerful for building a foundation leading to success in just about any calling in life.
Well put.
Posted by: Baby Furniture Cribs | September 16, 2009 at 11:51 PM
George and Jim,
Thank you for reading this, and sharing your thoughts!
You have both proven to be good friends, and class guys.
Thank you again!
JL
Posted by: The Franchise King | June 23, 2009 at 12:13 PM
Great lessons Joel. Sounds like your dad was an amazing guy.
Posted by: Jim Kukral | June 23, 2009 at 12:01 PM
Excellent advice.
Posted by: George Nemeth | June 23, 2009 at 11:33 AM
Paul,
Thank you so much for commenting on my post. You are a class act. In everything you do.
Joel
Posted by: The Franchise King | June 23, 2009 at 08:03 AM
Joel, your Dad would DEFINITELY be proud about all that you do!
I love your short list of five things he taught you to do. It covers way more than most short lists ever come close to defining.
Smile, as you'll always have the memories...
Posted by: Paul Segreto | June 22, 2009 at 10:03 PM