A leap of faith

What were you doing 14 years ago?  April 2011.  Let me jog your memory.  Fidel Castro officially stepped down as the leader of the Communist Party in Cuba; The Arab Spring was in full swing; and Game of Thrones premiered on HBO.  Any help?

I remember exactly what I was doing.  I was pumped full of adrenalin as the first ever issue of The Mover was about to hit the press.  Yes, it was printed in those days.  It was a scary time as the start of any new business venture always is.  In my career I have had a few, what I call, ‘leap off a cliff in the dark’ moments.  I suspect you might have had some yourself.  You plan as best you can but, in the end, you just go for it.  You have no idea how far the fall is, or whether you will land safely, but you just do it anyway.  In my case I had also performed commercial suicide by walking away from my biggest customer to give myself the commercial freedom to start something new.  Madness some would say. 

But you know what it’s like.  You get an idea, and it takes over your life.  Obstacles are swept away.  Doubters ignored. Reason abandoned. But I had a cause. Nowhere in the world was there a publication that gave everyone a voice, whether or not they were members of one of the associations.  Those companies could not offer an opinion, promote their services or even have access to information that would help them run their businesses.  Moreover there was no publication that had the freedom to say what it believed to be true, unfettered by politics, and give others the opportunity to do the same.

I was determined that it would work.  But it had to be self-financing right from the start.  I had little resources and no back-up from anyone else.  So I would like to use this anniversary to thank all those who supported us through advertising over all those years.  In particular, I thank those companies that advertised right from the start, who committed even before the magazine existed, were true to their word and paid quickly so we could afford to continue. They showed a huge leap of faith for which I will be forever grateful.

I hope, over the last 14 years, you feel we have repaid your trust and been true to our mission.

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