When Henry Novak and his brothers arrived in Canada in 1967 to escape a lack of opportunity in their native Slovenia, they had no option but to work hard. They came without money or English, with the hope of getting a job with their brother Tony who had preceded them in their journey to Canada,and was working as a logger in the B.C. interior.
The brothers worked hard to survive and within a few years found someone who would finance them in buying their own equipment. They got some contracts and built their business.
One day, Tony overheard that a local sawmill was coming up for sale and the brothers scraped all their equity together and bought the mill.
They had some tough times in those early days, but the Novaks stayed focused on building something for their families. The brothers divided the operations of the Dunkley lumber mill between themselves, one brother running the business office, one the woods division, and Joe running the operations in the sawmill. Despite having only a Grade 3 education, Joe had a brain for engineering and designed a mill that was one of the most efficient in Canada at the time. This allowed the business to thrive over the years.
For many immigrant families, coming to a new country is not only a risk but a necessity. The Novak brothers came to escape the Communist regime that left them few options for work.
Other immigrants come to escape war or poverty or just for adventure. But why do so many immigrants end up starting or working in their own business?
A study published in 2014 by the Kauffman Foundation found that in 2012, immigrants were twice more likely to start their own business than a native-born American.
These businesses provide jobs, pump money into the economy and contribute to the communities where they are operating.
One only has to look around our communities to see that most immigrants are working hard to provide a better life for their families, many times in family-run businesses.
But do immigrants really work harder than those people who are established in a country? There is the argument that when immigrants like the Novaks come to a country, in order to find opportunities other than baseline jobs, they need to own businesses. The path to upward mobility for anyone is limited if you are unable to get a good-paying job due to a lack of connections or language skills.
Running a business for anyone can be very difficult but imagine if you didn't clearly understand the language or expectations of your customers. Having worked as a business coach with a number of immigrants in their businesses, I can tell you that the stress of not clearly knowing the culture can lead to difficulty.
Many immigrants find opportunities serving their own people in their new country.
Others open restaurants or businesses bringing their food, flavors and products to the new land.
Finally, others bring skill sets, knowledge and technology that transform and revive existing or traditional businesses in their new found land of opportunity.
I have never in my life worked harder than when my business was on the rocks. I had to struggle and fight for every dollar it seemed to find ways to make the business work. My guess is that immigrants starting businesses in Canada or the U.S. or any other land where they are trying to establish a new beginning are faced with those similar situations. Either they make the business work or are faced with failure, shame and the discouragement that any business entrepreneur experiences. The difference might be that having lived in my community for decades, I knew that if I lost my business, because of my connections, and skills, I could probably go out and get a job working for someone else. This might not be the same for a new immigrant.
A reason why they might work harder is because failure is not an option.
In thinking about this issue, I had this discussion with a friend who is an accountant. He told me that what he noticed is that first-generation immigrants do indeed work hard, save money and build wealth to provide for the second generation. The second generation, who also seem to have the same hard work ethic and are upwardly mobile, get educated and labour in school to become professionals. The third generation of immigrants seem to become acclimatized and engrained in the culture and don't have the work ethic or determination of their parents and grandparents.
The Novaks and so many others came to North America in search of a better life and found one.
They struggled through tough times and good times to create a future for themselves and their children. The entrepreneurial mindset of immigrants is something that we need more of in our culture to ensure a vibrant diverse economic future. Look around in your community today and be thankful for the immigrants who are providing jobs and running businesses that are contributing to the community in so many ways.
Dave Fuller, MBA, is the author of the book Profit Yourself Healthy. Dave works with business leaders to help reduce stress and improve income. Email your comments to dave@profityourselfhealthy.com.
