Linnyette Richardson Hall is the Owner and Creative Director of Premiere Event Management, a Baltimore-based firm that specializes in creating unique, elegant, fun and personality-oriented events. She is the Special Contributing Editor of the two book series Going to the Chapel (Penguin Putnam 1998) which was created for couples who are in the wonderful process of planning their nuptials. Formerly, Linnyette was Contributing Editor for Signature Bride Magazine and Columnist forWeddingChannel.com. American television audiences are able to see her work her “wedding magic” as one of the featured consultants on the hit reality television series, “Whose Wedding Is It Anyway?” which airs weekly on The Style Network.

………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………..

As we wind down from a long holiday weekend that celebrated our nation’s 234th birthday, I wonder how many of us know when our own “Independence DAY” occurs? Being an entrepreneur is very much a solo effort, very much solitary. The decision to step out on a humble, a whim, a hunch is HUGE and in that moment – we take on the mantle of independence.

I spent the 3rd of July with my kids and some friends, watching the fireworks display at a local park. As all of the spectacle unfolded in front of me, I thought about my independence. I thought about the moment in time when I decided that the life of a full-time business owner was for me. August 21, 1997 was Independence Day for me – the last time I walked out of somebody else’s office, the last time I punched a clock, but the first time I could take a deep breath and look forward to my future.

13 years ago, I boldly and happily declared my independence. I revel in that thought each and every day. How many of you have done the same? The Fourth Of July may be our nation’s birthday, when we remember how the founding fathers, broke from the bonds of tyranny, to form a “more perfect union”. But for each of us, engrained in the world of self-employ…we need to take a moment to reflect on what has brought us to this point, when we made that “break”, when we decided that enough was enough and the time had come for US to take a stand.

Go ahead – start your own fireworks, have a grand parade down Main Street…….celebrate what you’ve created and nurtured. Remember YOUR Independence Day!