About Us
Hey and welcome to Library of Biz!
We are a couple of high school sweethearts who happen to both enjoy the challenges and rewards of business. I (Denver) gravitated towards running my own business as early as high school when I started a web hosting company. Samantha, my wife, is a true business pedigree. Both her grandparents and parents owned and operated their own businesses.
We both were raised with the notion of the American Dream instilled in our values. You know, the cliche that the application of hard work pays off over time?
Only, there is something they don’t tell you about the dream…
Well on the Way to a Dream, But…
A few years back, we poked our heads up from a busy life. We realized that we were almost out of all debt but the house. For all the work unlocking this adult level of achievement, life still felt rushed, hectic, and frustrating as the weekends hopelessly melted away into weeks full of commutes, repeated hardwork, and exhausted minds in the evening.
While we had both tripled our original starting salaries in about 7 years and managed to pay off (or stay out of) traditional debt patterns, the living part of life just wasn’t there. While unhappy isn’t quite the proper way to put it, we knew that life involved more than simply surviving.
A Side of Side Hustle
Little did we know that we were blazing a bit of a trail by making money on the side before anyone called it a side hustle. This little business habit actually began in high school with a small web hosting business, but included things like website design, websites, computer repair, softball pitching lessons, sewing bowties/dresses, and many other adventures.
These side hustles not only put extra money in our pockets, but ultimately positioned us to avoid common debt situations. Scary things like student loans and maxed-out credit cards were not a threat.
While I grew into a busy IT Manager/Director of Emerging IT in the finance industry, Sam launched her own Database Consultation service. She did this after a nearly eight year stint as a Management Analyst in the government sector. We side-hustled on-and-off along the way.
Hi Kids! The Goalposts Moved A Bit.
When two wonderful, yet precocious, boys grew our family total, things changed. We “adulted” along the way, but now the stakes increased. Suddenly, lack of debt and business drive weren’t the most precious things in the world. We had these precious little helpless creatures who uprooted every notion of reality that we had.
Looking back, talk about a fun and challenging ride! It took 12-hour days with a newborn, working six days a week at times, contractor jobs, and more for us to grow.
As we cared for children, we realized that not every meltdown was a crisis. Just as in life, not every poor decision or even failure meant the end. Instead, we saw echoes of our business life reverberate in our life as parents.
Along the way in the business world, we learned key concepts. Setting goals, project management, time management, and other skills for success forced us to grow.
Lessons encountered along the way grew into the framework that would become Library of Biz. We launched one of the largest Christian forums on the net in college along with a domain name business. As the lightbulbs clicked, we eventually saw people begin to seek us out for questions about business growth and finance.
We don’t share that last part to be presumptuous or brag. In fact, you would find us quite humbled by what we didn’t know and needed to learn.
In our own experience, one of the most important and rewarding pieces of the puzzle were mentors. The mentors may be a trusted boss, a classic business book, or podcast, but these people always shared key insight and experience that often illuminated our next step.
We want to pay it forward!
In the interest of paying it forward, we began planning Library of Biz. Nothing is more rewarding than watching the same lightbulb clicks we experience light up on the faces of those around us.
Libraries have been around since theLibrary of Alexandria started a few centuries BC ago. So it made sense that a virtual location dedicated to the business professional community would make a great business library. We desire to accumulate the experience, history, and wisdom necessary to grow. Library of Biz is a place where small business owners, side hustlers, and professionals collaborate and grow intentionally.
We desire to help our readers create ELITE careers, businesses, or side hustles that enable them to enjoy what matters! This path to a better life passes through financial freedom, sound business wisdom, and a good bit of sweat equity!