Owning a business is demanding in itself, but when you add being a father of three into the mix, and being a present father, it takes on a whole new level of difficulty.
Owning a pawn shop has been both rewarding and challenging, and managing the day-to-day of business while being a present father has taught me more about work-life balance than I ever imagined.
Juggling Two Worlds:
As a father, my days start early. Between making sure the kids are ready to go in the morning, and helping my wife manage the household, it’s a lot, and that is before opening the doors of the shop. But these moments with my kids are the fuel that keeps me going every single day. I want them all to see first hand the value of hard work, responsibility, and perseverance.
My journey to owning a pawn shop wasn’t the typical journey you see. I was a high school graduate that joined the Army National Guard out of high school to be able to go to college. Right out of Basic Training I was waiting tables trying to figure out what I was going to major in when I met a couple while waiting on them at Applebee’s. He was impressed with my ability to ensure their experience was like no other. I ran everywhere I went and he thought that was awesome. So at the end of the meal he told me he owned a pawn shop and he wanted to know if I worked for him could I “hustle”. Me being an 18 year old that had never been in a pawn shop, I assumed he meant can I “hustle” people. Boy was I wrong about that. He meant can I run, move, fast, that kind of hustle. So once I started it wasn’t what I signed up for. So I stayed for a few months and decided to try something different. Not long after leaving there, I was activated and sent overseas for Operation Iraqi Freedom(there went the dream of going to college). After returning from a year in the Middle East, I visited the pawn shop to purchase a TV and I was offered a job to come and run the shop. I was very confused because I didn’t think I had done very much to earn something like that. Come to find out they were so impressed with my work ethic they wanted me to run their business. As a 20 year old this was something I wasn’t even considering but I decided, why not. Well 20 plus years later, I now own that business and we continue to grow every single year, leaps and bounds.
My kids have always been my #1 priority, my job a distant second. While my job ensures my family is fed and our bills are paid, I decided a long time ago that I wouldn’t allow work to interfere with my being present in their lives.
Running a pawn shop in Shreveport, LA is a balance of rewarding and depressing. Some days you have a full day of great clients that are totally awesome and understanding. They are happy and don’t have anything bad going on in their lives. Then some days you feel like your heart is being ripped out by stories of parents not having enough money for rent, food, gasoline, diapers, or just basic household items. So this world can be rewarding and depressing at the same time, depending on the day.
I am starting this blog for a few reasons. I want updated content for my website, yes. But also so I can share with everyone the fact that the pawn industry may have a “rough” reputation, but we are a necessity for millions of Americans on a daily basis. While some people don’t want to admit that, it is the truth. So I want to shed some light on the way things work in our industry, how we are one of the most regulated industries in the country. Also how we serve a very important role in the economy of our country.
Hopefully this first blog entry was interesting. If not, I do apologize and I hope you come back to read next time and it will be better.
Thanks for reading.
Edward Best-Owner
Discount Jewelry and Loan
Shreveport, LA