When people get laid off or they leave -- one day you're sitting with all these people, you're all friends, you're all getting along, everything is fantastic -- the next day you're dead to them. For whatever reason, whether they're uncomfortable or they're scared they are going to lose their own job, whatever happens there, it's a whole different dynamic. It's like you've got this scarlet letter. They don't want to catch the disease of being laid off.
The thing that was a little distressful about getting laid off...my wife was two months pregnant. And we kept it to ourselves. You know, when you first get pregnant you worry about anything can happen so you keep it to yourself for about eight weeks or so. So I come home to my pregnant wife and let her know I was laid off.
There were a lot of nights and weeks where I just laid awake ... I think you find yourself in a little bit of denial. The enormity of everything happening at once gets so heavy that it gets to the point where you just say, "okay." I mean, I got to the point where I said all I have right now is I've got the next eight hours of this day. And I'll just do the best I can with this time. Because if I really sit back and think about what's happening, if you do that helicopter perspective, I'm probably going to run away. With my wife. But you know, it was a lot to carry. And I think it was even more so for my wife because she was carrying a baby -- carrying us.
From a Brooklyn craft brewer to an event tent designer, America's urban core is home to a host of novel, fast-growing small businesses. Here's the top 100, as ranked by the Initiative for a Competitive Inner City.
