Calvin Peters could see stars again. That was the second time during the short walk that a fit of coughing made him stop and wait for the pinpricks of light to fade from his vision. Calvin was on his way to see his girlfriend, Edwina, a second-year nursing student. Calvin knew that Edwina would nag him about going to the doctor; however, he had more important things on his mind.
A bitter fall wind was blowing and Calvin was underdressed in a thin jacket. That would make “No-Nonsense” Edwina totally pissed. But Calvin liked to dress for looks, not the weather, and Edwina could never stay mad at him for long. He smiled as he thought how he would charm her; maybe suggest that she use some of her medical expertise to “check him over". Calvin was a charmer and Edwina was crazy about him.

Calvin wasn’t employed and he wasn’t a student any longer either, having graduated with a Legal Assistant Diploma from Wellmore College the previous spring. Since then, Calvin had taken a two-month holiday “to get over being a professional student". Then, he spent the next two months “checking things out” and deciding what he did not want to do.

Some of Calvin’s classmates had grabbed jobs with big law firms right after graduation, but Calvin realized he didn’t want to be bossed around by a bunch of lawyers. Other friends had found work in business or government legal departments but Calvin didn’t envy their regular nine- to-five lifestyle. A couple had even started their own paralegal firms, but Calvin felt that they were offering too many different services to make any serious money. And money was an important part of Calvin’s plan.

Calvin did have plans. He had spent all of the last month planning and tonight he was going to share the details with Edwina. Part of the plan was to move in with Edwina; maybe even consider marriage. Her parents would go nuts but Edwina, even though she lived with them, did not rely on her parents for money. She paid her own tuition, supported herself with part-time work and had substantial savings.

The second part of Calvin’s plan was to start his own business: “CP. Investigations". Calvin had no intention of being a run-of-the-mill private investigator. He would be a specialist. He had come up with the idea while working in the claims department of an insurance company, the summer after his first year of college. Calvin intended to be a free-lance investigator, working for insurance companies, checking out phony accident claims. That’s all he’d do: no divorce work, no skip-tracing or industrial stuff. Calvin would specialize in surveillance of insurance claimants.

It was perfect for him. Still and video photography had been his hobby since he was a kid and even his insurance company experience would help. He and Edwina could get an apartment with a spare room for an office. He already owned the photographic equipment and felt he could get a government-guaranteed loan to pay for advertising and a cell-phone. He would lease a vehicle.

Calvin pretty much had all the business details worked out in his head. He had borrowed everything the Public Library had on starting a new business and had worked out most of his Business Plan. He hadn’t gotten around to writing it down yet, and he recognized that procrastination was his biggest weakness. But he assumed that Edwina would help him write the plan and she had enough self-discipline for both of them.

He hadn’t told anyone about his plan yet. It was only fitting that Edwina be the first. He stopped outside her house to complete another bout of coughing before going in.

Two hours later, walking home from Edwina’s, Calvin noticed neither the cold weather nor his persistent cough. He was devastated. Edwina had refused to consider being spouses until he could prove himself to be more “reliable". To her, that meant proving he could hold down a good job for at least a couple of years. And she expected him to earn the approval of her parents. She had scoffed at his idea for a business, calling it “romantic secret-agent foolishness". If he couldn’t even take responsibility for his own health, she asked, how could he take responsibility for a business?

Edwina had tried to temper her remarks by assuring Calvin that she cared for him deeply and that she fully expected him to grow into the kind of man that she was prepared to share her life with. Until that time, she promised, she was prepared to be patient and continue on as things were now.

By the time Calvin made it home, he had recovered from his shock and convinced himself that his big mistake was not putting enough effort into dealing with Edwina. He had worked out some ideas to charm her, to convince her to support his plan. The first step was to make a doctor’s appointment.

1. What is the basic problem here?

2. What has Calvin done wrong?

3. Does Calvin have the potential to be a successful entrepreneur? Why?

4. What advice would you give Edwina?

5. What advice would you give Calvin?