First and foremost, THANK YOU, to all readers and subscribers! Your responses to the inaugural issue (January 2020) of GFB Monthly have been so rewarding and encouraging. Visits to our home page (www.gfbconnect.com) are soaring, subscriptions are trending sharply upward, and verbal/written responses to the quality of what we have written are notably positive. We could not ask for more as this “far-fetched idea” has turned into reality.

While not intentionally designed to be, the formation of GFB Connect, Inc. has mirrored the startup of the entrepreneurial firms we love to write about. It all starts with an idea, awareness of a “gap” that needs to be filled, skills to do so, and desire to create value. But…

Start-ups of entrepreneurial firms require “something” inside the person driving the new venture. In Jeff Neuville’s THINK piece this month (“It All Starts Up Here”) you will read of eight widely recognized “traits” entrepreneurs seem to have in common. In the second installment of “So, Just What Is an Entrepreneur?”  (WORK category) you will learn of a relatively new definition of an entrepreneur and more about the personal side of the entrepreneur “type”. Then in the piece on Malachi Morris, “Old, New, Rusty, Charming…”, in CREATE and his TAPROOT Coffee Bus, one can get to know of an entrepreneur who fits the traits without being defined by the traditional role, perceptions and missions of many. Very interesting.

Despite definitions and traits, we all can benefit by reading “between the lines” of each GFB Monthly piece on a Catawba Valley business and understanding that forming a business is all about turning an idea into some form of action. Creating a business is an exercise in transformation, and not all people are natured to do that with grace and skill. If reading last month’s piece on Zack Taylor (entrepreneurial owner of three local enterprises), this month’s piece on the uniqueness of the Waffle House legend (LEARN), the hard work to business ownership pictured in two other of this month’s profiled businesses, or the natural and smooth growth of a spin-off business – we all can see the ballet of ideas spinning and twisting into reality.

Ideas are wonderful to hear about, but the creations that ideas beget through hard and skillful work is simply inspiring.  Enjoy reading about Entrepreneurs, their ideas and their creations in this issue of GFB Monthly!  (AND, spread the word to others about GFB Connect, Inc.)

We have all heard it before. That sage wisdom offered by so many: “Get your head straight first.” “It’s what’s in your head that counts.” “Think first, then act.” “It’s a mind game.” – and so on. In the world of small business building and entrepreneurialism, those words ring true.

It is at once: Big – but intimate, Old – but very new, Ugly – but beautiful. But, it is most definitely about what’s on the INSIDE. If you have not yet guessed, we are describing first impressions of a fine entrepreneurial venture, The Coffee Bus, a product of TAPROOT.

Get your attention? I thought the title might entice you to read this article about an innovative,
entrepreneurial firm in Hickory.

One can see them everywhere it seems. Major highways, intersections, well-traveled streets.
There they are. Rectangular in shape. Yellow and black in color. Standardized. Sometimes a bit
shady; sometimes well-lit and inviting. What makes them special is more about what’s inside
than how they look from the outside.