Is working hard a crime?

When you believe in something, and you put your heart and soul into it, it no longer becomes work. It is just part of making your dream a reality.

In my life, everytime I have had to work hard towards achieving a goal, and done the hard yards, it has always come true. Every single time. No exception.

It's incredible to think that 8 years ago, I had a dream to build a global small business marketing company. For 7 years, I thought about it and made a few trips overseas, but I knew that I wasn't personally ready for the challenge and to actually put in the work that needs to occur to make this dream come alive. In short, I wasn't ambitious enough.

Since January, I have been working 7 days a week and I have a plan for everything imaginable that will help make this dream come alive. I am 100% dedicated to seeing it through and building a global empire that is successful and the most innovative of its type. I believe that what I am doing is industry-leading, and in the best interests of small businesses globally.

In the past 8 years, I have learnt alot about small business owners and the obstacles that they have to overcome to grow. Like all entrepreneurs, small business owners are faced with running an entire business, without often having certain skill-bases to make sure that an area of their business receives the attention it deserves so collectively the entire business can be a success.

For us, our 'hold-back' was always people. Finding the right people for the right job and building a culture conducive to productivity and excellence. Everything else was right, but this one area wasn't and it held the business back. Our hands were tied. We couldn't expand and couldn't get past a certain point.

Finally, we learnt to hire the right people in to the organisation so that they can be responsible for employing a team of people that together are building a great, highly motivated culture of positivity and dedication to one cause - and that is helping small businesses grow.

We are now ready to tackle the world of global expansion and the US is our first port of call. It's exciting and at times exhilarating to be part of this wonderful journey and adventure. The people we are meeting along the way are interesting and inspiring. Our team believes in the dream. We are all on the same page.

But it does take hard work, long hours, sacrifices and missed birthdays. Do your friends understand your dedication to your business or career? Please share your experiences.