Todd Palmer

Success has many different definitions.

Nineteen percent of 11,500 U.S. employers have reported that they plan to add employees in Q1 2018, the strongest first-quarter hiring outlook in 10 years, according to the Manpower Employment Outlook Survey, released in Dec. 2017.

As of June 2017, according to the U.S. Department of Labor, there is a record 6.2 million job openings nationwide. It's the highest number since the Labor Department began tracking job postings in 2000.

Recently, a major airline (United Airlines) garnered world-wide attention because it had a passenger (i.e. a paying customer) forcibly removed from an overbooked flight. Almost immediately, the video shot by fellow passengers showing the incident went viral.

As business leaders, managers, and owners, our days often revolve around jumping from one fire to another.  In the hailstorm of client issues, vendor problems, or employee challenges, our day-to-day time often gets wrapped up in immediate, urgent business issues.  Rarely, if ever, do we get the luxury to consider the positive impact we have on those we meet, to ponder how we will be remembered.   The hectic daily world often prevents us from pondering what our legacy will be. 

As a business owner or business leader, no matter how hard you work, you can only get a certain amount of work accomplished.  The limitations we all have in the vital areas of time and energy cannot be understated — both have limits. To get more done, we hire employees.  

According to a November 2016 survey released by PeopleReady — a staffing firm that specializes in placing manufacturing workers — a labor shortage appears to be slowing job growth for the first time since 2007.

This is my cautionary tale for all small business owners and entrepreneurs about a massive setback, which ultimately resulted in success beyond my dreams.

Titan Gilroy is an in-your-face change agent with a TV show on MavTV called Titan American Built, who wants to solve the skilled trades gap, specifically in the computer numeric controlled (CNC) space. He is willing to start at the lowest level of the American workforce, the prison system, and he is willing to teach the inmates at no cost.

What do restaurants, retailers, landscapers, and manufacturers have in common — they all need entry-level workers. And, where do companies typically have their largest area of turnover — entry-level workers. Lastly, what segment of the workforce has the highest unemployment rate? Entry-level workers.