Embracing politics as an independent business owner with Sharon McMahon

Akua: Today’s episode is one that every single independent business owner needs to tap into. With the recent U. S. election, we need to have a better understanding of what that means for small business owners everywhere and what better person to come in and educate us, none other than New York Times bestselling author, speaker, and America’s government teacher, Sharon McMahon.

Now, I want to be clear, this episode is not about who you voted for. It’s about empowering ourselves as business owners to stay informed so that we can make the best decisions for our business, however that looks like. And whether you are feeling nervous or optimistic, there is one thing that Shan reminds us, and that is nobody can determine the success of your business, but you.

Now let’s get into the episode. Hey everyone. This is your host, Akua Kanadu, and you’re listening to the Independent Business Podcast. More people than ever are working for themselves and building profitable businesses in the process. So on this show, I get to sit down with some of the most influential authors, entrepreneurs, and creators to break down the signs of self made success so that you can achieve it too.

Hello. Hello, Sharon. How are we doing?

Sharon: So good. I’m excited to chat. Thanks for having me.

Akua: Yes. Well, welcome back. Number one. I mean, I know it’s been a crazy time for you. So we’re just so, so thankful that you took the time to stop back again at the independent business podcast to really just have a much, much needed conversation.

So we were like, who better yet to have on than America’s government teachers. Thank you.

Sharon: Thank you. I’m happy to be here.

Akua: Yes, well, you know, I’m really curious because, you know, like you, I’ve learned about you in 2020 and I think there’s a lot of us that did. And so when you look at 2020 with that election to now, even for you and your journey, how are you feeling?

What major differences have you seen within these past four years?

Sharon: Hmm. It, well, these past four years have been challenging for everybody. One of the biggest reasons, of course, is the pandemic. Yeah. Nobody wants to repeat that. Nobody’s like these, this was an amazing time. Like let’s make sure to go through this again.

How can we get a repeat? So no matter somebody’s perspective on what the right thing to do during COVID was, you know, people who were impacted, you probably knew people who had family that was severely impacted. It was just the whole scenario. was kind of a nightmare. And it was really challenging for small businesses too, for a variety of reasons.

You know, like if you live in a place where you were not allowed to be, uh, you know, indoors without masking, or you had, you had closures of indoor locations, there were just so many aspects that were very challenging for small businesses to navigate. So this is, you know, The 2024 election is fundamentally different in that it does not have the shadow of a global pandemic hanging over it.

And of course, in the fall of 2020, we were like at the height of the pandemic. You know, they had not invented like the treatments yet. They had not invented the vaccines yet. And so, uh, it was really, uh, Like it was a very scary time for many Americans. So that’s a huge difference. This, this go round is that we don’t have that anymore.

So that’s a plus, right? Nobody would, no one would argue with that. No pandemic in 2024. That’s that gets a thumbs up. What is a challenging, I think, for small businesses to navigate at this time is how, how contentious. This election has been so contentious and there’s a tremendous amount of pressure on people with a following and for many business owners, they work to grow their social media platforms.

Many small business owners work to grow a personal brand in addition to their business brand. Uh, and it’s, there’s pressure from outside forces to comment. on political things. There’s pressure to comment on like, we’re voting, you know, my business is supporting this person or that candidate. It’s difficult to know how to navigate those forces and what the right thing to do is.

And I feel like a lot of. small business owners in particular, and you can tell me your perspective on this from, from where you sit, they feel like it’s a lose lose scenario. If they say nothing, that’s, that’s a lose. If they say something, that’s a lose. Like there’s not a, many people feel like there’s not a way to win at this equation.

What, how do you, how are you, what are business owners telling you?

Akua: Yeah, I think, I think you’ve definitely nailed it on the head 1000%. I think there are a lot of people that are just not really sure. But I will say though, is that there are, like to your point, is so contentious and a lot of people are watching.

And so I do think comparison from 2020 to now. Some people who have voted for president elect Donald Trump, they have been like, I was terrified of being canceled in 2020. Here is my, you know, here now I am jumping in the open. This is who I’m voting for. Other people who have always been very open, you know, obviously voting for Kamala Harris.

Uh, you know, have always, like, that’s never changed. They’ve been very vocal about it, you know, with where they align. And so, I think now more than ever, though, from what I am seeing from audiences, like, um, in the small business realm, is that people do want to know where you stand. Yes. Regardless whether it is, because I think a lot of us want to know, Where we can, you know, spend our time, right?

And like, we know that this person aligns with our values. So what I have been seeing a lot too, is threads have drastically taken off. Every lot of people, especially among black women have left X to go to threads. And there’s a lot of conversation right now of how do we spend that time with people that we know align with our brand values?

And so like, we can have this community, right? That feels safe. And, and, and, and I think. That’s how everybody is feeling. It doesn’t matter where you lie. I think everybody’s trying to find a space right now where they feel safe and they feel seen and they feel heard and they feel valued. And so, and I’m all for that.

I think that’s an amazing thing. However, I do feel like we are really missing an extremely important conversation because as a business owner, it doesn’t matter which side that you lie. You need to get political because no matter what I’ve said to so many times that the way that the government is set up.

It just does not support small business owners regardless. And so I do feel like as small business owners, we need to find a middle ground here because no matter who’s in office, these policies affect us drastically. And so that’s kind of where I’m at. And I loved your episode, which I’m going to, we’re absolutely going to plug that back in episode six at the early stages of early days of the independent business podcast, where you talked about small business advocacy and those types of things.

And that thing is just so relevant To today and now so that’s that’s kind of where i’m at. Yeah.

Sharon: Yeah I I think that’s that’s really that’s you bring up a couple of really good points Which is that the tax code and many governmental policies? Unfairly penalized small businesses, they on their, their policies that are aimed at these giant corporate international, you know, multinational conglomerations that are raking in tens of billions of dollars that have the potential to monopolize entire markets.

Like, do we want one company controlling all of the supply of life saving drugs? You know, like these, those are Real issues that government needs to regulate and deal with. Uh, but yet the trickle down of that to a small business who was like, listen, it is me in my living room. Okay. Like I’m trying to do my taxes.

And my taxes are absolutely incomprehensible even to somebody who wants to do the right thing. Even if somebody who is not trying to cheat the system. Um, like I’m just trying to pay what I owe, but it seems really, I said this in the previous episode. It seems really unfair to small business owners that people like Jeff Bezos should be taxed on 80, 000 of his income only while the rest of us don’t have corporate structures.

We’re able to live off of the unrealized gains of our massive portfolios. And we’re paying, you know, paying huge amounts of money in, in taxes when the billionaires are not like, that is, that is, Infuriating, as a small business owner, it’s infuriating that you can’t call the IRS and get somebody on the phone, like, ever.

You know, like, you might wait on hold for two to three hours and still not talk to somebody. Uh, there’s a lot of, you know, like, I have a lot of beef. With the system. Uh, I have a lot of beef with the system. Uh, it did not get better during the Biden administration and it did not get better during the Trump administration.

Guess what? Yep. It didn’t get better during either of those administrations. So I have, I, that the problem is that I don’t have a lot of confidence that things are going to change for the better, uh, in the short term, which is why it’s important that small business owners, uh, get. equipped and come prepared to the table.

That’s why your work is important. That’s why advocating for small businesses is important. Uh, cause big changes are actually not on the horizon. We are currently living under the previous Trump tax plan. Like right now, uh, we are living under a tax plan that was passed in 2017, went into effect in early 2018.

Our current policies are not. The workings of the Biden administration, but the Biden administration also did not have the muscle on Capitol Hill in terms of what was happening in the house of representatives, et cetera, to change anything. So we’re still, we’re currently living under the previous Trump plan.

There’s not any, uh, things on the horizon at this juncture. Now I’m not saying that nothing will change in four years. I can’t predict the future, but I haven’t seen any proposals that are aimed at making things easier for small businesses. And that’s why like the resources that you provide are. It’s so important for people.

Akua: When it comes to these policies, like when you’re starting a business, it’s just not, it’s not at the top of your list. It really isn’t. I mean, and I said this so many times where when I first started my business, I’m just trying to get a client, right? Like I literally three months for my, my mom was finally like, okay, but what about health insurance?

And I was like, you know, and you know, just those things. And that’s when I was like, oh my gosh, there’s so many more things to being a small business owner that isn’t very enjoyable that I don’t like, but like I have to address it. And so I love even too, in your past episodes, that just. Um, you know, that getting involved on the local level is equally just as important.

And I think a lot of the times we hyper focus and I think like, I always look at you at your content. I think now people are even midterms take that equally as seriously. And also to look at locally, like who’s in office. And what they stand for and all those different types of things. And so even for me now, like whenever I see people on the ballot, I Google, I do my research to try to see like, and where do you stand in terms of small business, like advocacy, like, what are you doing for me as a small business owner?

That is now at the top of my list when I’m looking for in a candidate. And before previously, even when I first started my business, that never was until I tried to get health insurance and all these different types of things. And I was like, well, this. sucks. And you know what I mean? And I’m like, wow, like this actually really does impact me.

And so especially like now, how do you, like, what are things that small business owners can do to prepare, especially right now with Biden administration, that time is coming, is coming to an end. And then the Trump administration, that’s going to be starting up here in January.

Sharon: You bring up a really good point.

And I wanted to just build on it very quickly. And then I want to answer your question, which is that there is more to small business advocacy than tax rates, right? It is not just about should the tax rate be 21 percent or 25 percent or 30%. The tax rate is actually only a tiny fraction of the issues that impact small businesses.

Your point about health insurance is a huge one. Small business owners pay. So much money in health insurance for themselves and their employees, if they can even afford it, right? Like the, the cost of providing health insurance, uh, is truly prohibitive for many small businesses. They, they just are not able to even offer it as a benefit.

And then they’re not able to attract the best talent. They’re forced to deal with contractors or they’re forced to have part time workers where they don’t have to offer health insurance. How do they insure themselves? You know, like my husband has had a kidney transplant. And so he will, uh, require significant amounts of medical care for the rest of his life.

We, you know, hit our, our deductible like in January every year. Uh, but as a small business owner, health insurance is a really, really important component. When you’re researching candidates, it can’t just be, does the, Does this candidate want low taxes? They also need to advocate for quality of life issues that impact small businesses like health insurance.

Like, can I afford to send my kids to the, to daycare so that I can actually do my job? There’s a variety of, um, quality of life issues that, that directly impact small businesses that, People need to be looking at the big picture and not just what is, do they want 22 percent or 21 percent or 25%? Like there’s way more to it than just a percentage of tax rate on profits.

Akua: Yeah.

Sharon: Um, if you have a 22 percent tax rate on profit instead of 21%, but you still can’t buy health insurance. Well, that’s, that’s not actually benefiting you. Right. So anyway, you, you, you totally understand my point that there’s a lot of, this is very multifaceted issue and there needs to be better advocates in government for small businesses because small businesses drive this economy.

Akua: We really do have a specific tunnel vision when we’re looking at things in regards to politics. And I think as business owners, and I think just in general, as business owners, as humans, as individuals to really, you know, sit down and really think about, like, revisit your values and what is important to use, then you can make the best educated decision.

I think a lot of the times, to your point, that we are voting based off of emotion and all these things, and we don’t necessarily have all of the necessary information to make the best decision for us. And I think even, and it doesn’t help, right, when you see, you know, Especially with the current, uh, campaign, right?

Like, I mean, the current election, I mean, it’s, again, it’s very contentious. Emotions are high, and this and that. And so, I think, again, it’s always, Checking in with yourself, grounding yourself and being like, okay, what do I value health insurance is important to me. Okay. Maybe taxes are like, you know, obviously tax cuts are important to me.

Capital. That’s a big thing, right? Like business owners trying to

Sharon: access

Akua: to capital. I mean, there’s so many different things. And I think again, Checking in with yourself to really see what it is that you truly value so you can make the best decision. And so the question that I had asked was, how can we as business owners, because to your point, it doesn’t really, we’ve seen from both administrations where it hasn’t really been effective for small business owners.

And I think this is just a good thing. Things that, what do we need to be looking at in order to prepare ourselves as business owners when a new administration, doesn’t matter who, because I think that’s something that we have to keep doing no matter what as small business owners, how, what are the best things that we need to be looking at?

How do we prepare essentially just to make sure that we are setting ourselves up for success? Because I know inflation is a big thing right now and I know that conversations of terrorists have come up and that means so, you know, like there’s just a multitude of things of not to panic, but how do we, knowledge is power.

How do we prepare for that? Yeah.

Sharon: That’s a great question. It’s a really good question. So the first thing to be aware of when it comes to tariff proposals, this is something that I’m getting a ton of questions about, is about the potential for tariffs. Um, the incoming administration favors an aggressive tariff plan.

Okay. And so if anybody’s listening to this and they don’t understand what a tariff is, a tariff is not a tax on a foreign country. Like some, uh, some people, uh, may have said it’s not a tax on a foreign country. The foreign country does not pay it. A tariff is a tax on the importer. So if you are Walmart and you are buying toasters made in China, And you, uh, there’s a tariff on goods made in China.

It is Walmart who pays the tariff. It is not China that pays the tariff. And so what, what actually will be put into place in terms of tariffs remains to be seen. So this is not meant to be, Catastrophizing or a need shirk, the sky is falling. As you mentioned, information is power and being prepared for a worst case scenario is much better than being unprepared for a worst case scenario.

The best thing that can happen then is you’re pleasantly surprised when you, when the worst case scenario didn’t happen. Right. Um, and so some of the proposals that have been floated from the new incoming administration, uh, are proposing very, very sizable tariffs on. Incoming goods specifically from countries like China, which we know, uh, is where a very large percentage of goods that come into the United States are made.

So if somebody is, um, relying on either raw materials or finished products that are made overseas, um, people should be preparing for the potential of a fairly significant Increase in the cost of goods. And that is, that’s different than an increase in tax rates. And this is how it might impact businesses differently.

So an increase in tax rates, which again, um, there’s not currently a proposal for an increase in tax rates, but I just want to illustrate the difference. If somebody increases corporate tax rates, you might be paying a higher percentage on your profits. Uh, and that is different than you having a greatly increased cost of goods, right?

If I, if I own an ice cream parlor and I’m paying three, 3 a gallon for ice cream and my cost of goods goes up to 10 a gallon for ice cream, that is a cost that I’m, you know, the cost of inputs, what it takes to make your product. Your ice cream cones that is going to be passed on directly to consumers.

Uh, it’s going to have to be passed on directly to consumers. But what that means for businesses is it’s absolutely going to impact your strategic planning. How much is it going to cost us to buy a pallet of something from our normal overseas supplier? If this is, uh, if this applies to you, that, that potential, the cost of that Could be dramatically increased, especially if what you’re importing comes from China.

So that’s something that small businesses need to be aware of when they’re doing their 2025 strategic planning. People have asked me, do presidents have the right to enact tariffs without the approval of Congress? And in some cases, in many cases, in fact, yes, They do. And that is because Congress has delegated that authority to come to the president.

If the president can make the case that, um, a tariff is needed for the good of national security, which when we’re talking about, um, somebody who is both a very large trading partner, but also a foreign military adversary. Like China is it’s actually pretty easy to make the case that that tariffs are needed for national security.

Now you might not agree with that, but what I’m saying is that it’s easy for a president who wants to enact tariffs to make that case. I’m putting tariffs on it because on these goods because it is important for national security that we pull back our dependence on Chinese goods. The point of tariffs, if anybody is not familiar with this, and I would imagine there’s a small.

Perhaps sub subset of your listeners who, who are not familiar with this, the point of a tariff is to disincentivize businesses from doing business with overseas trading partners and to shift their production to domestic means. And so, uh, in the past there have been varying degrees of success with that proposal.

We have some tariffs now, by the way. We’re not, we’re not starting at ground zero with tariffs. We do protect certain industries in the United States by putting tariffs on, uh, incoming goods from other countries on certain products. Things like, uh, steel, for example. We, we protect the American steel industry.

by putting tariffs on foreign steel so that companies who want to build things are more incentivized to buy it in the United States. The difference here though, is that we already have a domestic steel industry, right? We already know how to make steel in the United States. We have steel mills. We have the raw materials.

We mine the raw materials here in Minnesota. And then our shipping industry puts them on a boat to go down the Great Lakes to the steel mills of Pittsburgh, right? So we have a domestic steel industry. Um, what we have less of is the ability to produce things like electronics. We don’t have a domestic electronics industry anymore, for example.

So this will impact different businesses differently. I cannot have one blanket pronouncement, um, but it’s just something to be aware of that. If you are, if you buy anything. You buy it retail even. There’s a good chance that the price of those things is going to go up if it is made overseas, which is a very large percentage of products in the United States.

Akua: Exactly. Yeah. Yes. And I was thinking too of like, okay, like client gifts, right? Like if, number one, if you’re a product based business, right, this is, this could potentially, and again, not to fear anybody, it’s just like, okay, now we just prepare. We look to see, we do that financial forecasting of what are, what are things going to look like in our business this year?

Do things need to be put over here? Do I need to spend more time here? Or what are the ways can I include additional revenue streams in my business? Right? Like that’s being strategic or like, again, if you’re a service based business and you’re like, okay, like client gifts. That might need to, that might go up more, right?

Or however, especially if you do more customized gifts, like there’s so many different ways that this can affect you. Like if you need to purchase a laptop, if you need to purchase additional equipment, that’s going to make sure that you’re able to efficiently run your business, right? Again, do that forecasting in your business.

I think this is the perfect time to do that as we are in Q4. So you can make, look at the data, look at the data. So you can make these strategic decisions. And I think again, like educating yourself and I think to, to your point, Even what you just said earlier, like, I, like, I think again, going even too locally of how these things can truly, truly, truly impact you.

And so I even love that you broke that down with what a tariff is. Cause I’m like, oh yeah, that really can affect all aspects of our business in ways that we just didn’t even really think of. And I think, I think to your point of just like taking that time and really just looking at your numbers, looking at the data, looking at what you have coming up in your business and just strategically plan accordingly.

And if things, you know, are much better than you anticipated. Great. Like, but at least as long as at the end of the day, you’re not losing sleep over it. And that’s, I think, the most important thing.

Sharon: That’s right. It’s much better to prepare than to be caught unaware.

Akua: Right. And

Sharon: so that might mean, depending on what your business looks like, that might mean making strategic investments now at the end of Q4 before any potential tariffs would be enacted.

I’m thinking about of a photographer, for example, who has been eyeing a new camera system. Those Almost, uh, like almost everything related to camera gear is made overseas. And so, what might that do to the prices of a new lens, or a new camera body, or something like that, uh, moving forward into the middle part of 2025?

I can’t tell you what that will look like at this point, but if the proposals that are currently on the table move forward, that could look like a fairly significant increase in the cost of equipment. Purchasing an electronic, for example, next year. So if a small business is doing that strategic planning and is thinking about like, well, I do have this little chunk of change, you know, like, uh, at the end of the year, this might be a good time to reinvest some of your profits, um, rather than just.

Taking them as profit and then paying taxes on them. This might be a good time to reinvest those profits in your business. Hopefully your business has been profitable and, and, uh, sort of taking stock of what, what that might look like next year, either maybe it’s pre buying things now that, you know, for sure you’re going to use making an investment in like new equipment that you were thinking maybe I’ll buy next year, but maybe I should be better from a tax perspective, from a business perspective to buy it now, those, these are just things to weigh.

Yes. When a small business owner is planning strategically.

Akua: Yes. I love that so much. And I think even now, like even just having this conversation with a lot of the education that you have provided, it just, I feel more at ease and it’s like, all right, like we just got to sit down and strategize and make the time.

Right. And I think again, like, I think a lot of us as small business owners, we are going to be okay. Like no matter what, no matter who is in office, I think that’s the main thing as well is that I think I wanted people to take away from this episode is no matter who is in office, he was a small business owner.

You have the power, you have the power. And so things are going to be okay no matter who’s in office, right? Like you’re passionate about what it is that you do, you know, you can do it. So at the end of the day, just take the time and create a plan and do what you need to do. And so that’s, that’s what I wanted to say.

Like I’m hopeful. I’m hopeful. And I’m like, okay, like this isn’t things are going to be okay. And so how can we as business owners, I think as a whole, just cause I’m guilty of this too. I’m going to be real. Cause you know, for me, I align myself with brands whose values I aligned with and stuff like that.

And, but I do think as small business owners, We really do need to have some form of comfort, you know what I mean? Just where we can see, you know what I mean? I think, cause the conversations are happening behind closed doors. You know what I mean? I’m not gonna lie. They’ll be like, oh my god, this person supports this person.

I’m like, I’m not messing with you. And I’m guilty of it too. I’m not gonna lie. You know what I mean? I, I do that. And so, and a lot of people do. But, and there are other people who say like, oh, you know, like, We can agree, disagree politically and still be friends and some of that and I think for some people that just that could be triggering right because I think for a lot of what was on the table this election, and so, again, where’s how can we just start having some conversations I think more so is what I wanted to ask.

Sharon: Yeah, I think, to your point about, we’re gonna be okay. Even if the person we did not prefer got elected, and even if the person we did prefer did. Why? Because our success is not dependent on who is in the White House. You don’t have a successful business today because of Joseph Biden. Yeah. Nor did you have a successful business in 2019 because of Donald Trump.

Your success is not dependent on who is in the White House. So I think that is a really important thing for all of us to remember, no matter our feelings about who got elected, whether we’re excited or not. Whether we’re feeling a sense of impending, pending dread, your success in 2018, 2019 was not dependent on Trump and your success in 2024 was not dependent on Biden.

And we need to remember that your success is dependent on you. So, uh, and you. Are the person you can control, right? So that’s, that actually is good news. That’s good news for all of us that we are, we do not need to sit around waiting for some president to fix it for us. Uh, anybody who is going to try to ride in on a white horse and be like, I have the plan, follow me.

That person always wants to be a dictator. We are the plan. The plan is not who’s in the white house. The plan is us. So I take comfort in knowing that the plan is us. I don’t need to be dependent on the whims of who lives at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue. I’m dependent on myself and I can adjust my own sales.

So I think that’s absolutely worth remembering, like. Your success is not dependent on who occupies the White House. In terms of like, how can small business owners deal with these issues of like, how do we find a like minded community? How do we find people, our, our customers that align with our values?

Because we all want to do business with people who align with our values. Honestly, you know, like that makes our lives easier. If we, if we align on values, it allows us to attract our ideal client. And so I’m not saying that it, I don’t think it’s wise to have your entire Instagram feed be, um, ugly pictures of the candidate you didn’t like.

Like we, we hated that person. Look at here’s an ugly picture of that person. That’s not. Smart business. But I do think it is. It’s up to each individual business how they want to, you know, conduct themselves. But I think there’s ways to communicate your values that don’t necessarily go so far as to say, Please vote for XYZ person.

The right people will pick up on XYZ your On the values that you, uh, are communicating and perhaps the wrong people will be repelled. And honestly, repelling the wrong customers is part of your job as a small business owner. You cannot attract everybody. That’s, that’s actually a bad idea to attract everybody.

Even Disney World. Repels the wrong customers, right? We’re going to, we’re going to communicate what you can expect here, what our values are as this giant company and what kind of experience you’re going to have with us. And for some people, that’s not going to be a fit. And that actually is true. Good.

You can’t accommodate every, can you cut everyone in the world’s hair? No, that’s stupid to even think that, right? Like everyone’s not your customer. So I think there’s a way for business owners to communicate what their values are without necessarily overtly alienating people who maybe are not quite on the same page as you.

They’re, and, and also while repelling people who you’re like, I absolutely would not want to do business with them, right? Like, don’t try to come up in my business with your Nazi flag. That’s not going to work here, right? It’s not going to work here. So we’re not doing that. We want to repel the wrong people from our business and that, that the way that you communicate that, um, is going to depend completely on your industry.

It really is. Um, there is not a blanket pronouncement that I, again, I can’t tell you how I, somebody who does hair should Communicate versus how somebody who, um, owns a boutique should communicate it, but it can be communicated via the types of products you carry. You can have state value statements and say, we really believe in supporting local businesses that, uh, you know, treat their animals humanely.

If you run a restaurant or, you know, like there, there are many ways to communicate your values without just posting pictures of candidates and like thumbs up and thumbs down. And those. Those serve to repel the wrong people and attract the right people. I’d love to hear from you. Like, how are, uh, successful small businesses best navigating this from the conversations you’ve been having?

Akua: Um, you know, I think a lot of the private conversations that I have been having are, you’ll see somebody who endorses a certain candidate that you just don’t agree with. And I think a lot of us are like, some of us, not everybody, but you’re like, okay, noted. Like, I’m not mad, but now I just know I’m not doing business with you.

Like, even collaboration. Right? Like, you know what I mean? Where I’m kind of like, okay. And so, but also, on the other end of that, it’s still, but not in a mean way of like, okay, but it’s just like, hey, like, I’ll still treat you with respect. Love you from afar, but like, obviously we just don’t align, and I want to make sure that I have a community that upholds this values that doesn’t necessarily lean towards your values, and like, that’s okay.

You know what I mean? But I do think that. No matter what, we have a lot of events where business owners from all walks of life and space and political beliefs and all these different things will like, we all gather in some capacity, no matter whether you think you do or not. I, and of course, naturally politics, like we, it’s just a very contentious topic.

So people try to stay away from it, but then it’s like, okay, but every four years we’re back at it again. You know what I mean? So I’m kind of like, well, how do we. Just start having some types of conversations where people are still honored, not disrespected or feeling unsafe, but still honored. Um, and I think that’s, That’s the hard part.

If that makes sense. Yeah,

Sharon: it is. It is. There’s a difference between we don’t align and maybe I’m not going to shop with you anymore. And you just like are, you know, like I see where you’re coming from. That does not fit for me. Yep. Best of luck to you though. There’s a difference between that. And, um, intentionally trying to harm someone else’s livelihood, right?

Yes. Yeah. A difference between that and like torpedoing their business on purpose. That actually is not going to attract people to you, your political views. If your goal is to try to say like, these are my values. I think these kinds of people should be, uh, elected. I don’t align with values that say A, B, and C.

Intentionally. Harming people whose values are a B and C actually does not make them want to vote for your candidate more, right? Yeah, so that’s one thing to keep in mind too is like what is my ultimate goal here is my ultimate goal to move the Needle on childhood poverty is my ultimate goal to get You know fill in the blank person elected is my ultimate goal to Help make sure that, uh, small business owners can have health insurance.

Figuring out what your goal is makes a huge difference here, right? Because if your goal is to get certain types of candidates elected, and that’s a big value for you, um, then you need to consider what. Kinds of actions will help do that thing.

Akua: And

Sharon: often, if your goal is to like, we need more people to rally around this cause, you need to build a bigger tent, not a smaller tent.

And sometimes that is, um, uh, and again, I think it’s up to each individual business owner, how they want to play this, but the idea of bigger tent. Is one that can sometimes feel unsafe to people, right? Like I don’t want people in my tent who, who believe things that are really antithetical to my beliefs.

I don’t want people in my tent who, uh, are, have deemed what I think are dangerous ideas and the, what I would say to that person. Is there’s a difference between come live in my house, come sleep in my bed. There’s a difference between that and I can collaborate with you on an issue that we both believe is important.

That sort of, uh, Um, consensus building that type of coalition building is actually how most important things get done in the United States. That is how the civil rights movement happened. That is how we got the voting rights act, how we got the civil rights act, how we got the, you know, housing, how we got housing rights in the United States.

Coalition building. It does not mean that people align on every value. It does not mean that they attend the same church. It does not mean that they spend their money in the same way, but where they could align. Was everyone should have equal access to the ballot in this country, even if we don’t agree over here and over here on the margins, that type of consensus building is how important things get done.

So I would, I would, Encourage people who are thinking about this issue. And I know that people who are listening to this are, um, the thinking kind of people, they want to consider all of the angles. I would encourage people to think about what it looks like to build coalitions and to build consensus.

This is how women got the right to vote in the United States. This is how black women organized to help get the right to vote in the South in the 1960s is they built coalitions sometimes with people that had other bad ideas. It did not mean find people who have 100 percent of the same ideas as you. It meant find people with whom you can work on a topic that is near and dear to your heart and move the needle on that topic.

And then we can focus on the next thing together. Uh, when we’re sitting around waiting for everyone to align on everything, that is how we get stalemates. That is how we get the least productive Congress in the United States is history. which is what the 118th Congress, the current sitting Congress has been the least productive Congress in the United States history.

Um, that is what it looks like when we don’t build coalitions, when we don’t find consensus and we wait to align on 100 percent of values, nothing good happens from that. So that’s just one. One thing to just sort of like add to the list of things for small business owners to think about is how can I, what are my goals and how can I help move the needle on that goal?

Cause we can’t do everything. Yeah. You know, like we can’t run all the businesses, we can’t carry all the products, we can’t serve all the customers, nor can we achieve every political goal. What issues are the most important to me and how do I help move the needle on those issues? You can probably work with people who you disagree with on an issue like veteran homelessness, right?

People from both sides of the aisle can come together on that topic and move the needle for homeless veterans. It doesn’t mean we have to agree on everything else. If we will only, however, work with people. With whom we 100% align. Guess what? The veterans are still homeless at the end of the day. So we have to consider the broader sort of picture here.

Um, and I’m not giving a prescription of what to do. I’m just saying consider this in your decision calculus. What are my goals? How do I help build a bigger tent to meet those goals?

Akua: Yes. Oh my gosh. I love, love that so much because it’s so true. I mean, no matter at the end of the day, who you are, we’re also a business owner at the end of the day.

And a lot of these things affect us all. So it’s like, I love how you said that it’s a coalition, right? Like, and I think even for me, I’m like, okay, like having Even if you’re listening to this, just, you know, having some sort of empathy, I think as well as right. And then as you’re, but you don’t have to agree on everything, but as business owners, we have to be able to move things forward so that the government, the policies that are in place can better support us as business owners.

And so we have to make sure that we are continuing moving that forward. And that means like you getting involved locally, you really making sure that you are, uh, having these conversations so that you can learn more, right? Leaning from a place of curiosity. And, um, and so I, I, I love that you just shared that because it’s, it’s just such a good reminder of like this.

That is truly how you do move things forward. And this conversation has been absolutely amazing. And so I even want to pivot really quick because your book, like, I mean, you’re on a book tour right now and, you know, and I think, Just even everything that we’ve talked about today, I’m like, Oh my gosh, I feel like your book is just so important about like talking about these unsung heroes.

Like there’s so many people who have made such huge impact that we do not know. Even some of, yes, the infrastructure that we have isn’t the best for small business owners, but there’s somebody who fought to have what we have right now for business owners. And so I just want to talk about really quickly, just about your book and what truly inspired you, especially like now out of everything that we’ve talked about today, um, what inspired you to, to write it?

Sharon: Yeah, thank you for that. The book is called the small and the mighty, um, 12 unsung Americans who changed the course of history. And man, it does not, does not describe so many small business owners, right? They often are unsung, uh, and they often do such big things in their communities. That changed the course of history of their communities.

We don’t always, we think about history as being like this big, giant arc of like world history or American history, but in reality, the history of your community is part of part of U. S. history too, right? So one of the reasons I was inspired to write it was because I keep hearing from people, uh, that they, they feel like they’re, you know, who they are, um, is not enough.

That who they are is not big enough, that they live a quiet life, that they just want to cut people’s hair, that they just want to take some people’s pictures, that they just want to own their little store and raise their kids, uh, and that, that is not big enough to move the needle on world history, um, they don’t have the family money or the name or the connections or the elected office, and it seems like who I am, um, Is not enough.

And, uh, it’s easy, if that’s your viewpoint, it’s easy to feel hopeless. It’s easy to feel like nothing I ever do is going to be enough. And, uh, this book, which, by the way, I just found out this morning, was named by Amazon editors as one of the best five books of the year. Um, which is like, that is insane.

Congrats. Yes. Yes. Oh, amazing. Yes. Yes. It was on, I did not know this. It was on CBS this morning. And Gayle King, hell, like, is on the show. She’s like, I love this cover. I love this cover. This is a good cover, Gayle King said. So I was like, amazing. Love it. Yes. Can y’all hear it? Yes. So, I mean, the idea that this is, this is a message that we all need.

Not only is it interesting to read, it is a page turner, but I, my goal is for you to close the last page of the book and know that the small in this country truly are the mighty. Um, and that great Americans are not just people of the past whose faces are in black and white pictures or in an oil painting, that great Americans live.

Thank you. Right? And the good news is that you do not need to wait for an invitation. You can just decide to be one of them. And, uh, I just, the stories in this book help sort of illuminate the way. How have people in our, in our past made a way in the wilderness for us? And this applies equally, uh, on a personal level, but also for small business owners.

Many people in this book owned their own small businesses, uh, that changed their communities for the better. In fact, the first woman profiled in the book, her name is Claire Brown, um, she was a formerly enslaved person who started a small business. I even say in the book, she should be in the dictionary as, uh, you know, her picture should be next to the phrase self made.

And I, I love the idea that she was somebody who was, who was self made. Um, and what she chooses to do with her, with her self made money is truly remarkable.

Akua: Mm.

Sharon: Yeah. Oh my gosh. So anyway, thanks for asking. I, I am really proud of it.

Akua: Oh my gosh, yes, and I’m definitely going to get it now, like I’m just, but I just love the way that you laid it out, because it’s so true, like, the impact that is made are in those smaller moments, right, that like, that you just don’t see, like what, you know, what we consider the most mundane, that’s where the biggest change lies, and I think again, I think it, just reminds us is that you are more than enough and you can make an impact where you are now.

And so that’s just, uh, that I just have all the feels like, thank you. so much for sharing that. And I’ll see, and congratulations, like that is phenomenal. And so for, for, So every single question that we ask, like I’m sure as you remember, um, what do you think is the biggest differentiator between the businesses that succeed and the ones that fail?

Sharon: Great question. And there’s many different answers, but I think for me, you know, it’s like venture capitalists don’t invest in ideas, they invest in people. Right? And the same is true of like, what is the difference maker between a small business that succeeds and one that fails? It is the person that runs it.

And uh, the good news is you have control over that.

Akua: Yes. Oh my gosh. Kept it short and sweet too. Oh my gosh. Well, thank you. Thank you so much for this conversation. This has just been, I think I needed this. I think if you’re, I think so many business owners, I think a lot of us needed this because you know, a lot of us are.

You know, some of us are happy. Like, I think there’s just a wide variety of emotions. And I think this episode, I think all of us are going to be collectively feeling the same thing, which I think is just what’s so needed right now for us to be able to, to move forward as business owners and truly make an impact in our communities and for entrepreneurs as a whole.

And so for people that want to connect with you, where can they find you? How can we continue to support you?

Sharon: Thank you. Yes, you can follow me on Instagram at Sharon says so, but you can also just go to my website, Sharon McMahon. com and linked. There is my, um, my podcast and my newsletter, um, my book, my social media.

It’s all just on my website.

Akua: Awesome. Well, thank you. Thank you so much, Sharon. Thank you. Thanks for having me. Absolutely. And everybody listening until next time, that ends our episode of the independent business podcast. Everything we’ve discussed today can be found at podcast. honeybook. com. Head to our website to access for show notes, relevant links, and all of the resources that you need to level up.

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