Page 12 - BusinessWest May 16, 2022

Editorial
OThe Important Work of Mentoring
ver the years, we’ve written many times about the and the anxiety that comes from working without the net of entrepreneurship ecosystem in this region and its a steady weekly paycheck makes it a difficult, nerve-wracking importance to economic development in the four undertaking.
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western counties. This is an area dominated by small busi- nesses, and it always will be, with growth coming organi- cally, rather by recruiting the likes of a General Electric (bad example, given what’s happened to that company) or a Smith & Wesson (OK, that’s another bad example and a rather sore subject.)
But you get the point. This is a region that needs to consis- tently encourage entrepreneurship, but also providing a sup- port system for those inspired to try to work for themselves, rather than someone else.
And that’s where the small army of mentors now working with agencies like Valley Venture Mentors, EforAll, SCORE, and others comes in. As the story on page 6 reveals, these mentors are doing critically important work, not just by help- ing individuals with the many technical aspects of running a business — from marketing to reading a spreadsheet; from building a website to writing and rewriting a business plan — but also with handling the roller-coaster ride that is owning your own business.
These mentors come with different backgrounds and experience in various sectors. But they share one common, and important, trait. They’ve been there, and they’ve done that. And, for the most part, those they are helping have not. And that’s why they are so important.
Entrepreneurship has been described as a lonely under- taking, even if there are other people involved in the business. And it is. The heavy weight of decisions, the risks assumed,
Opinion
Mentors understand all this, and they also understand that fledging entrepreneurs simply don’t know what they don’t know. So, they make a point to make sure they know more. And in the process, they may enable them to avoid some mis- takes, but, more importantly, they help make sure that they learn from the mistakes they do make.
More important still, they make it clear that mistakes are not just common. They are to be expected. They are part and parcel to owning a business, whatever the product or service may be. And they can overcome.
Indeed, one of the most important lessons these mentors impart to those they are assisting is that failure isn’t some- thing to fear. It is another part of the process, one very logical outcome when someone assumes risk and takes a chance on an idea. As one mentor reminded us, every entrepreneur of note has failed at some point in their career, and it’s not the failure that is noteworthy; it’s how he or she responds to it.
The mentors we spoke with for this issue all talked about the rewarding nature of their work. They all mentioned the pride they take in helping someone transform a rough idea from the back of a napkin into a success story.
All of us in this region share in these rewards, because each of these success stories brings more vibrancy and more jobs to Western Mass.
That’s why the work of these mentors is so critically impor- tant. v
Some Momentum for East-west Rail?
Much has been made of Gov. Charlie Baker’s recent endorsement of east-west
rail in Massachusetts.
It came at a meeting late last month
with U.S. Rep. Richard Neal and other key stakeholders in the bid to expand east-west commuter rail. And the immediate question on everyone’s minds is ‘what does this mean?’
Well ... it could make all the differ- ence in the world.
The governor’s endorsement was one of the key missing piece in this puzzle, and a large piece at that. Baker has said he’s never really been opposed to the concept; rather, he just had ques- tions, primarily about how much this would cost, who would administer the rail system, and how much land would have to be taken to create it.
These questions and others have been answered, or soon will be, leav- ing fewer of those pieces of the puzzle to fall into place for a project that just a
few years ago seemed like a good idea — especially for the western part of the state — but had much too steep a price tag and seemingly too little support statewide to become reality.
Now? On BusnessTalk, Business- West’s podcast, Neal said the stars are aligned for east-west rail in a way that probably couldn’t have been imagined even a year ago.
Indeed, funding for the project, seemingly the biggest question mark and hurdle facing this project could
be much less of an issue thanks to the $1 trillion Bipartisan Infrastructure Bill, which will, by Neal’s estimate, bring $9 billion to the Commonwealth. Meanwhile, the federal government put another piece in place when it approved freight carrier CSX’s acquisi- tion of Pan Am Railways — on condi- tion that Amtrak would have access to tracks in and out of Springfield.
And then, there’s Baker’s endorse- ment. Although he’s in office only eight
more months and candidates to suc- ceed him have already announced their support of east-west rail, his support
of the plan is critical at this juncture. That’s because things need to start hap- pening this year if funds from the infra- structure bill are to be ticketed for this rail project.
Baker has recommended the estab- lishment of a Massachusetts passenger rail authority to apply for federal funds and administer expanded east-west commuter rail, and he further recom- mends that it be established before this legislative session ends. His support of the concept might help get that done.
East-west rail still has many, hur- dles to clear, and in many respects, it remains a long shot. But Neal is right. The stars seem to be aligned, and a project that was the longest of shots just a few years ago may finally be gain- ing some needed momentum. v
12 MAY 16, 2022
OPINION
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