We are all here to serve. Of that I am 100% convinced. The questions of how? And for whom? they are very personal, and that depends on you.

But I would like to add something to the mix.

How are you serving yourself by knowing and acting on your business history? Here are some thoughts that I HOPE will inspire you (and instead of posting a separate article, I’m putting it all here).

· You will expand the story of your community’s history.

Why? Because your business is an integral part of the communities you serve. No company or organization is an island. In my experience, every company/organization story I’ve done has led me to new information about local or national history. Truly. Each.

You will expand the history of your industry.

Every business story I have done has added to the knowledge of the industry I was researching. As a historian, I will tell you that the “big picture” is often revealed through the lens of the “small picture”, the individual or individual business. Again, no one else will do your story except you, and you can add a lot to the larger story when you do.

· You will reveal and tell untold stories.

You may not understand how important this is, but it is. You have no idea what you’ll find until you start digging, and no one will care about your story more than you. No one else will do it except you. You might very well discover incredibly inspiring stories about entrepreneurs, inventors, women, veterans, activists, who knows? There are so many stories yet to be told. Be part of it! Must!

· You can inspire young people.

Depending on the stories your story reveals, you could provide some inspiring role models for the youth in your community to follow. Kids especially resonate with stories about overcoming obstacles to success. They want to know HOW. They want to know that they can do it too. And because you value history enough to do this job, you’re sending them a message as a leader in your community that history matters. That matters.

· You will be at the service of your company or organization.

This job reveals all kinds of content for your PR and marketing. Your story is unique to you, and you’ll find great things to tell it. You will attract media attention and new customers. Your existing customers will love it even more. Your reputation will skyrocket.

· You will make your team proud.

We all want to do work that makes us proud, and I promise you that making and celebrating your story will make your team proud. One of my clients is celebrating her 100th anniversary right now, and her CEO just did a PowerPoint presentation of her story at an all-staff meeting. They have an incredibly honorable history and a founder’s story that you could use to make a movie out of. Right now, my client’s staff is very proud, very arrogant, and very much enjoying the place where he works. Do you think that works in favor of my client???

You will be honoring the descendants and founders.

I really think this matters. No matter how old or young your company is, honoring the people who came before you, living or dead, comes back to you in spades. You will receive the benefits of having done it, and they will be your biggest fans and promoters.

· Inject much-needed resources into the historic community.

When you do your business history, you will be in contact with, and hopefully form strategic partnerships with, the repositories of historical information (libraries, historical societies, and archives) that you communicate with. They need you, and you need them. Yes, they need your check when you pay for photos on your business history, for example, but I ask you to think about what they can do for you and what you can do for them as a PARTNER. Making a business story is an excellent opportunity to win on both sides and to form long-term and mutually beneficial relationships.

· You will be sending a loud, clear public message that history matters.

It does, it does, it does. And by doing her story and letting “everyone” know about it, she’s providing leadership on the issue. Please do it! You don’t need a Ph.D. to get involved in history, just the desire.

Inspired? Fantastic!

Please get in touch and let me know what you decide to do!