Let’s Support America’s New Pioneers
(Victor Hwang and John Bridgeland)
- America’s story has been written by those bold enough to begin. The revolutionaries who founded a new nation, the farmer who moved west to claim and seed land, the inventor who built a new machine, and the newcomer who opened a small shop on Main Street were all pioneers. Each had no guarantee of success. Each carried the promise of progress.
Today’s entrepreneurs are America’s new pioneers. They do not ask for certainty or wait for permission. They see a gap, an unmet need, a better way—and they act. In garages, kitchens, and co-working spaces, they envision and build with a spirit of possibility.
But courage and risk-taking are not enough. We know the path to starting a business is full of obstacles – complicated rules, high fees, scarce capital, and limited networks. Good ideas are shut down by red tape, hardworking dreamers rarely find access to funding, and our education system does too little to cultivate the knowledge and skills to invent.
It’s no surprise then that while more than 60 percent of Americans want to start their own enterprise, only 9 percent actually do. That’s wasted human potential and lost economic opportunity.
To meet the demand, America needs to innovate to fix the very systems inhibiting the creation of new businesses. Fortunately, there is a plan called America the Entrepreneurial, covering a range of issues to strengthen entrepreneurship in America.
Entrepreneurs want freedom to innovate. No lengthy forms, filing fees, or non-compete restrictions would enable them to focus on translating ideas into business ventures, not on burdensome compliance. It’s possible -- in Colorado, the Governor reduced the fee for starting a new business to one dollar.
They also need access to capital. Establishing new development banks for entrepreneurs, waiving taxes on early revenue, and enabling new businesses to compete fairly for public contracts would be a good start. Innovative financing models are emerging, such as Collab Capital in Atlanta, Novel Growth Partners in Kansas City and Founders First in San Diego.
Starting a business can strain families and households, but policy can help. Tax deductions or credits could minimize childcare costs, health insurance can be made more accessible and affordable, and mortgage lenders should treat entrepreneurs the same way they treat employees.
AI and technologies are changing our world and displacing our workforce. Our educational system needs to keep pace by equipping students with entrepreneurial inspiration and skills with courses of study and degrees that reward innovation, so everyone has the ability to start enterprises that meet the demands of an increasingly complex age.
Such efforts take leadership from Governors, Mayors and others. They also need focused attention – such as an Office of Entrepreneurship for every state, city and county. Nevada was the first state to pass a Right to Start Act, establishing such an office. Missouri, Indiana, New Mexico, and Kansas followed with similar legislation or executive action.
This plan is not charity. It is strategy. New businesses create nearly all net new jobs in America. They fuel competition, drive productivity, boost household incomes, and renew communities. Every thriving business today—Ford, Apple, Amazon—was once a fragile new idea. Somewhere in America, the next idea waits for its chance.
America the Entrepreneurial is a movement to support today’s pioneers and bring needed change in communities and states -- an invitation to enlist 250,000 Americans to help clear the ground for millions of Americans to start their own enterprises.
As America – a startup nation -- celebrates its 250th birthday in the coming year, let’s remember that to support entrepreneurs is to support America itself. For in every entrepreneur lives the promise of our nation’s next chapter. And in supporting them, we write the story of our future together.
Victor Hwang is CEO of Right to Start. John Bridgeland is CEO of More Perfect. They are Co-Chairs of America the Entrepreneurial.
- Do you ever notice a flutter in your chest? Feel unusually tired even after a good night’s sleep? Get winded from walking up the stairs when that never used to happen? These little signs might not feel like a big deal, but they could point to something more serious: atrial fibrillation, or AFib.
- Between deciding where to apply, visiting campuses, and completing financial aid forms, October can feel like crunch time for college-bound students, with
- The cancer treatment landscape is undergoing a profound shift. Patients, healthcare providers and advocates are seeking alternatives that deliver both clinical efficacy and quality of life. At the forefront of this movement is GentleCure™, a proven, noninvasive treatment for the most common type of cancer, nonmelanoma skin cancer.
-
“Cinematic Destinies” by Patricia Leavy
“Karma Never Sleeps” by R. John Dingle
“Labyrinth of Shadows: The Witch's Rebirth (Part 1)” by Michaela Riley
“The Order of the Wolf: Species Chronicles: Book Two: Covenant” by Lisa Lacriola
- We all want to look as vibrant as we feel, but sometimes our skin tells a different story. If you've ever felt that dreaded dryness, dullness, or loss of firmness—especially as we get older and lines and wrinkles begin to show—you're not alone. By our forties, cell turnover slows by up to 50%1, weakening skin’s ability to produce natural Hyaluronic Acid. And it makes an impact—more than two-thirds of women over 40 report uncomfortably dry skin, with over 70% saying it's their top concern2.
- On Sunday, September 21st, Marine Toys for Tots returned to the racetrack with Richard Childress Racing (RCR), proudly sponsoring Austin Dillon’s No. 3 Chevrolet in New Hampshire. But this race wasn't just about speed— it was about heart, hope, and the power of possibility through the impact of Toys for Tots and supporters across the Nation.
- The loss of a loved one is a tragedy we’ll never be fully prepared for, but there are tactics to consider that can ensure a family is protected financially in the face of personal loss.
- Las afecciones cardíacas pueden afectar a cualquier persona, en cualquier lugar y, a menudo, sin previo aviso. Ana Florencio, de 59 años, lo experimentó ella misma, cuando lo que comenzó como un día normal se convirtió rápidamente en uno de los momentos más aterradores de su vida.
- Novice chefs and everyday meal preparers finally have their answer to avoiding tears and smelly hands from chopping garlic and ginger. When it comes to the secret ingredients behind impressing your family, friends and office party peers, one can literally say the missing ingredient is now in the bag. 

