In the book Thou Shall Prosper, author Rabbi Daniel Lapin talks at length about the dignity of business. He lets us in on a little secret too. We are all in business, unless we just are "stuck" at a job.
I agree with the good Rabbi that business is an honorable vocation. We interact with other human beings to get to know them and serve them. No one can be an expert or great at everything. There is room for each of us to specialize and be of great service in one area or another. Finding ways of benefiting each other through service is what business is all about.
Last week, I had the honor of talking with many different businesspeople at a local networking event. I found people that are building a different kind of banking experience for a different kind of customer. I talked with a gym manager, credit union employees, health insurance provider representatives, solar power providers, and even some fellow financial literacy advocates.
Each and every one of them were more interested in finding out how they could serve me best. As we talked some even pointed me to other booths where I could find more people to talk to. There wasn't a single person that was only looking to "sell" me on their product. Only genuine believers in the products and services they represent looking to help other human beings solve problems and live better lives.
With today's society having a rather sour look at business professionals today, perhaps it's time to remember that most businesspeople aren't running major corporations worth millions or billions of dollars. Instead, most of them are living out a passion of theirs and looking to help others in the process.
At least to me, it was quite the uplifting experience.