ANOTHER Fortune Cookie? and some BIG NEWS

So I thought I saved this fortune from yet ANOTHER overly insightful fortune cookie, thus I've waited a few days to make this post in hopes of it turning up. Alas, I'll have to proceed without the photo... believe at your own risk! And for those of you who are wondering - No, I don't eat Asian food that often. It was merely a coincidence -I promise!

Last week I enjoyed a much overdue meeting with my friend Anh Nguyen. He's the type of guy a very level head, and his personality weaves a fine balance between entrepreneurial go-get-em enthusiasm and hard-working conservatism. I worked with Anh to help him open a Quiznos franchise he started and has since sold off, while maintaining his full time career at Deloitte. Every once in a while we bounce new venture ideas off each other. Naturally I was eager to update him on our progress.

We met up for Chinese due to his recent conversion to vegetarianism... a difficult routine to get into for a full-fledged omnivore, but likely a rewarding one once you get over the hump.

Upon opening my fortune cookie on the ride home I remembered the fortune I'd received after lunch with Brandon (full story) and I was hopeful to keep my string of positive, relevant fortunes alive!! I got my wish. It read:

"You will receive some needed support this week. Accept it graciously."

Did we ever!!!!

I'm about ready to burst because I still in good conscience can't quite proclaim our good news YET... but it's like millimeters away and I can't wait for the huge sigh of relief (which will be followed by a tsunami of work...). The bottom line is we secured funding for our first acquisition and I definitely underestimated how difficult that process is. I knew it would be lots of work, but all this projecting and negotiating and justifying and amortizing and present valuing.... all gets a bit tiresome. And I'm confident this was an ~easy deal, in the world of "deals."

Now I have to make sure to "accept it graciously." Heck, I'll do whatever the fortune tells me to do if I keep up this streak!!!!

It's good enough

It's not too often that I get horoscopes/fortunes/palm readings/etc. that actually resonate well. I'd have likely failed Astrology (as if you can major in it). But on a whim Miller and I hit up Eastar on Lake St, and this is what my fortune cookie had to say...




(Notice the missing apostrophe... maybe there's room to make a move in the fortune business? Our competitive advantage could be our award-winning translator!)




This wasn't one of those "damn that's a good idea" revelations. It was one of the "I-have-thought-about-this-and-this-is-a-sign-confirming-what-Iwas-thinking" kind of revelations. I vaguely remember preaching this mantra during Entre in Action last year. Now, my delivery might not have been top-notch, but apparently a Chinese wise-person agrees with the sentiment.

It's a timeless lesson for those trying to start, invent, create, redefine, and improve. And it's continuing to become oh-so-true as there is never less stuff to get done with each ensuing day.

Perfection is for fairy tales and middle school.