The word "corporate" has gotten a bad name. Nowadays it's a slam to say something has gotten "too corporate." But let's think about this for a minute. Just like any prejudice, it doesn't apply to everything.

Corporations didn't start big, most of them. Lots of big corporations are just little guys who became successful. We all say we want to be successful, but how do we talk about those who are? Take Ben & Jerry's Ice Cream, for example. They started small. One little ice cream shop. How would you feel if you were the ice cream guy and you worked really hard to make it? Then your ice cream becomes popular and you get the idea to package it and distribute it to groceries and health food stores. Then you get to make your ice cream in bigger batches using nifty new equipment. What's so bad about that?

We all love to slam McDonald's. And, on a nutritional level, I'd agree with you. But what about Ray Kroc's success story? He helped start the whole idea of franchising. All that means is that he wanted to share his success with others. So he built a company where any teenager could get a job and run the store. He created operating manuals and procedures that anyone could follow. He trained trainers and they trained managers all over the country.

Now there are several McDonald's in almost every city in the world. That means jobs and work experience for thousands, not to mention hamburgers for billions of hungry people. Sure, it's a corporation, but it's also somebody's success story.

Who else do we slam in the corporate world? Lots of them, aren't there?

What if I ask you, "Do you want to be successful?" Almost everybody would say, "yes" to that question. But then I ask you, "What do you think of the corporate world?" You'd most likely start describing everything that's wrong with it. Why would you want to be like them? Sorta puts a damper on our own dreams of being successful doesn't it?

I don't have all the answers, and yes, the corporate world could surely use some improvements. But how is that going to happen if all we do is put it down? How are we going to be successful? Think about it. You may not be the next Ray Kroc, but I'll bet you've got something you could contribute to improving the corporate world. What's your good idea?