If you aren’t investing in small businesses, then you aren’t investing in your future. The only future guaranteed by working for big companies is insecurity and daily sadness. And, those big companies have slaughtered the engine of America: family-owned businesses. Now, everything is a cubicle farm, a big box store and a parking lot. You can fix this. Start a small business. Invest in small businesses. Stake a friend in business. Buy small and local. (This is also how you start to fight the big, corporate takeover of your life.) My desires for this are purely selfish: my life is better if you have enough money. If you have enough money, you can give to charity, volunteer in your community, engage in your kids’ school, invest in decent politicians and you’ll probably vote. And, all you have to do is look at your earning life like you own it, not like you’re lucky to get a job.