Wake-up bite
The impetus to grab control of one's professional life doesn't necessarily have to come from a long, lingering illness. Any severe health scare can be a wake-up call.
Bill Douglas' enlightenment came soon after a coral snake's venom entered his body and attacked his central nervous system.
"In a matter of minutes I went from alive, well and healthy to paralyzed and near death," says Douglas, who was bitten while building a deck on his parents' Fort Lauderdale home in 1991.
He was given anti-venom, then spent several days in intensive care. There, he had lots of time to reflect on his life.
"I emphatically decided that the corporate life wasn't for me," says Douglas, now 46. "There were too many dreams within me that had yet to be pursued."
After he was released, he promptly quit his job at a Florida utility company. "I realized that I didn't want to be the guy in the corner office in 20 years," he says. Instead, he wanted to make his own schedule and live life on his terms.
He has since launched firms in areas such as sales, service logistics and information technology.
The health scare "was the jump-start of my entrepreneurial career," Douglas says. But even more than that, it taught him to value those around him, to say 'yes' when unexpected opportunities appear — and to have perspective when things go wrong.
"Life is a gift, meant to be enjoyed, pursued and shared," he says. "Failure happens, but life and health are worth so much more."
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