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This week, we’ve been talking about the 60′s generation and all of the changes they brought to the table.  We’ve also been discussing how to apply the revolutionary energy of the past to our businesses today.

This is the biggest variance in entrepreneurial achievement – every successful business started with a visionary.  Every single one.  There is a certain strength of character and stick-to-it-iveness about those people who can take their dreams and figure out how to create a reality, making their own blueprint to get there.  But none of them did it alone.

Take Ben & Jerry’s Ice Cream… no, I’m not offering you any – I mean, look at their business model.  They started with a dream that was more than just a recipe for good ice cream.  They had a vision they drew from the deepest parts of their beliefs.  The difference between their product and any other on the market stemmed from their own revolutionary idea:  Make a good product from all fresh ingredients, use the profits to help fund community activism, and offer people new opportunities to grow with them.

That’s not the tired business model people generally associate with corporate success.  They pulled in the community at large to be a part of their success.  Let’s not forget that they also took their own core belief of personal responsibility and built on it – making their business more than product sales.  It was a representation of their own character.

Today’s entrepreneur doesn’t have to rent a truck to sell ice cream across the country – though, don’t rule it out if you’re game.  You can connect in person and online, in a million easy to use venues and out of the way platforms.  But what are you marketing?  The answer is still the same as it was then, as it was a hundred years ago.  What core values and ethics do you bring to the table?  What makes your clients and customers tell all their friends how great you are?  It’s more than a product, and it’s more than just you…

Have you joined the revolution?