So here it is.

Fellow entrepreneurs, this year’s story of inspiration is upon us.

In fact, this isn’t just any old story. It may well be the Grand Poopah of them all, the best yet, fantasy-come-true business story of the 21st Century.

Was it really but 19-months ago that the founders of YouTube scrawled the name of their business idea on a cocktail napkin?

Apparently, it was. Google bought YouTube for $1.6 billion this week. Way!

Now, for all the rest of us that have been working for slightly longer than only 5 months less than 2 years, this sort of event comes as somewhat of a miraculous surprise.

Also incredibly inspirational and encouraging (and maybe slightly depressing - because, seriously, random TV clips on the internet = $1.6 billion??), but nothing short of a miraculous surprise nonetheless.

Ultimately, Google’s acquisition of YouTube means one thing and one thing only: the future of online video is just getting started.

It’s interesting, really. Does the phrase “streaming video” ring any bells? The architecture wasn’t in place to support the YouTube-type service, but it is now.

Actually, it has been for that past 19 months!

Next thing you know, some clever entrepreneurs take notice and a cocktail-napkin sized small business idea gets real big, real fast.

This is really a wake up call for all of us currently pursuing small business dreams, and others who are still seeking the nudge of motivation.

Remember all of those Dot Com ideas that were so very overvalued at the turn of the century? Once again, the investors’ checkbooks are out.

YouTube offers much more than a subtle wake-up call that it might be high time to dust off some of those ideas and begin the 19-month countdown to success.

Oh, and for those of you out there wondering what Yahoo!’s response to this will be, wonder no more: social networking site Facebook is next in line for the Midas Touch.

Here’s the point. No matter what your small business idea, high tech or low, get it together and put it to work.

After all, what a difference 19 months can make.

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Grow My Business can help lighten the load on understanding how to get started, gain momentum, and manage growth for the long run. And for small and home business software needs, check out Avanquest, the company that brings you the biggest bang for your hard-earned entrepreneurial buck.