Entrepreneurs of all ages can live their dreams

Published 1:30 am Monday, January 16, 2017

Do you think you are too young or too old to start a business?

I know Eric Vasquez doesn’t think he is too young.

Vasquez was recently featured in a news story on KOMO-TV about his business in Tacoma.

He was 10 years old, (yes 10!) when he started his business, Connect the Brick (www.connectthebrick.com).

Eric is now 12. He sells Legos in a quaint, 89-square-foot retail store. Connect the Brick is open in the afternoons after Eric gets out of school and on Saturdays. Eric pays the rent, purchases the inventory and is the chief salesman. He’s the person who makes everything happen.

Watch his television interview, (komonews.com/news/erics-heroes/erics-hero-the-12-year-old-lego-magnate) and you’ll be amazed at his understanding of what great customer service looks like and his insights into sales. There is no doubt he’s on the path to be a full-time entrepreneur, whether that involves selling Legos or something else.

Tim Kaylor doesn’t think he is too old to start a business.

Kaylor is the proud owner of AppleState Refrigeration Co., a local company providing HVAC and refrigeration services (www.applestaterefrig.com).

Kaylor had 32 years of experience in the field and decided that at age 53, he wanted to be his own boss and that he’d would start his own company.

Kaylor knows the difference between running a business versus just being very good at a trade. He is focused on figuring out how to better manage cash flow whencustomers don’t pay at the same time that your bills are due, as well managing employees for the first time. He hopes one day to have four service trucks and five employees.

Of course, the legendary Ray Kroc didn’t think he was too old.

Ray Kroc was the driving force behind McDonald’s.

Kroc was 52 years old when he got involved with McDonald’s. In the mid-1950s, he was selling milkshake machines. A small hamburger outfit in California named McDonald’s was one of his customers.

Kroc became intrigued with their concept. He saw an opportunity to grow this business in a way that the owners (the McDonald brothers) did not agree with, so he bought the company and kept the name.

His vision created more than 36,000 McDonald’s restaurants around the world.

It is easy to say that you’re too young or you’re too old to start your own business. That’s an easy excuse. This simply isn’t the case.

As Lego master, Eric Vasquez states eloquently at the end of his interview on KOMO: “Everybody has a dream, something they want to accomplish. Sometimes people dream their dreams forever and ever. Sometimes, I believe, you have to live your dream.”

It’s hard to disagree with this 12-year-old kid. Make 2017 the year you start living your dream.

Pat Sisneros is the vice president of college services at Everett Community College and a former small business owner. Send your comments to psisneros@everettcc.edu