Where It All Began

Before I ever stepped foot in City Hall, I was an entrepreneur. I built businesses from the ground up—starting with limited resources but an abundance of determination, faith, and grit. That experience taught me the value of hard work, innovation, and above all, accountability. It also gave me a deep respect for the everyday challenges that business owners face—from making payroll to serving customers with integrity.

So, when I became Mayor, I brought those same values with me. I didn’t see the government as some distant machine—I saw it as an organization that, like a business, needs clear goals, efficient systems, and a strong focus on service. And I believe that’s exactly the kind of thinking local governments need now more than ever.

Bridging Two Worlds

Entrepreneurs and public servants don’t always speak the same language. One group thrives on risk-taking, agility, and disruption. The other is rooted in process, policy, and consensus. But when the two come together, something powerful happens.

As an entrepreneur, I learned to solve problems creatively and quickly. When you’re running a small business, you can’t wait around for weeks to make decisions—you adapt on the fly. You measure success not just in ideas, but in execution. That mindset helped me cut through red tape, identify inefficiencies, and focus on results when I was in office.

For example, during my time as Mayor of Anaheim, we prioritized streamlining the permitting process for businesses—especially small and minority-owned ones. Instead of months-long delays, we worked to create a more responsive and predictable system. Why? Because I remembered what it was like to wait on approvals when every day of delay meant lost revenue.

Service is the Bottom Line

In business, customer satisfaction is everything. In government, the “customers” are our residents, families, and business owners. They deserve the same level of respect and urgency.

That’s why I made it a priority to listen—to actually pick up the phone, attend neighborhood meetings, and visit small businesses regularly. I wasn’t there to make promises I couldn’t keep—I was there to understand needs and act on them. That’s what businesspeople do: we stay close to our customers and build loyalty through trust and responsiveness.

Entrepreneurial thinking doesn’t mean abandoning process or accountability—it means using those tools to serve better. It means being transparent with your budget, spending taxpayer dollars wisely, and always looking for ways to do more with less.

Innovation, Not Bureaucracy

One of the biggest lessons I brought from the private sector is that innovation isn’t a luxury—it’s a necessity. Cities face complex challenges: affordable housing, homelessness, infrastructure, and public safety, just to name a few.

But too often, local governments get stuck in old ways of thinking. That’s where entrepreneurship comes in. It encourages us to ask tough questions:

• What if we partnered with local startups to solve traffic congestion?
  
• What if we used technology to make city services more accessible?
  
• What if we approached homelessness with pilot programs and tested solutions—just like businesses test new products?
  

When you think like an entrepreneur, failure isn’t feared—it’s a step toward success. You experiment, learn, and improve. That mindset is how we grow stronger communities.

Building Partnerships that Work

In business, relationships are everything. You don’t succeed alone—you build partnerships, collaborate, and find win-win solutions. I took that same approach to public service.

I worked with local chambers of commerce, faith-based groups, nonprofits, and even neighboring cities. No one entity has all the answers, but together, we can solve big problems.

An entrepreneurial leader doesn’t see collaboration as a burden—they see it as a strategy. We don’t build walls—we build bridges.

Leadership is Personal

What truly ties entrepreneurship and public service together is leadership. Not just managing tasks, but inspiring people, setting a vision, and leading by example.

I never forgot my roots as an immigrant, a small business owner, and a family man. That perspective kept me grounded and motivated. It reminded me that leadership is not about ego or titles—it’s about service. It’s about lifting others up, creating opportunity, and making sure that every resident—no matter their background—feels heard and valued.

A Call to Future Leaders

To anyone considering a role in public service, especially those from the business world: don’t underestimate the value of your experience. Your resilience, creativity, and accountability are exactly what local government needs.

Bring your entrepreneurial mindset to the table. Push for efficiency. Champion innovation. Listen more than you speak. And always, always remember that leadership starts with service.

City Hall may look different than a storefront or a startup, but at the heart of it, we’re all working toward the same goal: building a better future for our communities. And with entrepreneurial thinking, I truly believe we can get there—smarter, faster, and stronger than ever.