Have you ever been sick and tired of being sick and tired? Look within, not without.

 Our members are sick and tired of begging for crumbs when we have the recipe for success in the construction industry in our cities, counties, and states. The recipe for success is within each and every one of us individually and collectively. We must look within, not without.

 

 As members, we are no longer looking to the government. We shall look within, not without. 

 

 In “Self Help,” Samuel Smiley illustrates how reform can only be effected through individual action, economy, and self-denial; by better habits rather than greater rights. Smiley states,

 “ Government of a nation itself is usually found to be but the reflex of the individuals composing it. The government that is ahead of the people will inevitably be dragged down to their level, as the government behind them will be dragged up in the long run. In the order of nature, a nation's collective character will indeed find its befitting results in its law and government, as water finds its own level. The noble people will be nobly ruled, and the ignorant and corrupt ignobly. Indeed all experience serves to prove that the worth and strength of a State depend far less upon the form of its institutions than upon the character of its men. For the nation is only an aggregate of individual conditions and civilization…… It may be comparatively little consequence how a man is governed from without, while everything depends upon how he manages himself from within.

 

 As members and supporters of any membership organization, look within, not without. Ron D. Burton, Rotary Foundation Trustee Chair, shares a story of how he didn’t enjoy attending the weekly Rotary luncheons and terminated his membership. Burton states, “I freely admit I didn’t care much for the food or the weekly meetings. I didn’t think they were the best use of my time. But the real issue was that I wasn’t engaged. I had no role. I had no reason to be a member, and I didn’t need to go to a luncheon meeting that appeared to offer me absolutely nothing. But then the incoming President asked me to chair the Rotary Foundation Committee for the next year. That was the turning point.” I suggest Ron finally decided to look within, not without.

 

 Again as members of any membership organization, look within, not without.

 Become sick and tired of being sick and tired of waiting for the crumbs. Get involved in that which impacts you and your business goals. Do not wait for the government or any other organized group to dictate your future. Look within, not without.

 

 As small black women-owned businesses in the construction and engineering industry, many of our members are just sick and tired and are deciding that we will not take it any longer. We are looking within and not without.

 

 As members of Nabwic, we are women and men on a mission. Our mission and message for this moment in time is to support and serve as the advocate voice of reason. We are willing to create a place of service and to sacrifice for the betterment of others as the advocacy voice for our community. Our community is the construction industry. 

 

 This is not about me. In the construction industry, it is about you: 

 Collectively we are here to support and to serve. We create opportunities, which creates small businesses, which in turn creates jobs for everyone, not just a few.