The friendly neighborhood store

When I was helping my parents manage their Facebook Page, I once got a notification that someone had tagged the business. Worried it might be a complaint, I quickly opened the Facebook app to check. Apparently the person was stuck in the rain, and my dad gave her an umbrella to use and told her not to worry about returning it. She was grateful to my dad and wrote a post about this. She didn't even buy anything from my parents. It's just that my parents' workshop sits at the end of the sheltered walkway.

My parents have been in business for almost 40 years. As small business owners, they run the car workshop themselves and know their customers well. Regulars often come and chat with my parents, even when they aren't planning to buy anything. My mum became friends with several customers and also supports some who sell flowers, cakes, and snacks. Maybe it's just good for business. But I suspect it's more than that. Yes, the workshop is their business. And businesses are transactional. But that little corner store is also their livelihood—and their lives. They have had it longer than they have had me!

(This isn't to say my parents are pushovers. Try taking advantage of my dad, and you will get his wrath.)

Now that I'm running my own small business, I try to follow their approach. Of course, my business has to make enough money to sustain itself. But I refuse to let it be purely about cold-hard cash only. I want to know my customers, support their projects, and maybe even form a little informal community. We show up for one another without obligation. We trade ideas on commonplacing and notetaking but also reading, writing, parenting, exercising, running a business, and learning new things. If I do this right, maybe my little business will still be around 40 years from now.

But, by then, it will not just be my business—but also my life.