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Silver Fox Advisors History Corner

Silver Fox Advisor's History Corner

The Silver Fox Advisor organization is celebrating its 40^th Anniversary this year, and over the course of the 2026 calendar year, we will be sharing with you some of our history and memories in our Monthly Newsletter. Each month, we will feature a brief write—up on some of the more historical highpoints of the past 40 years in this “Silver Fox Advisors’ History Corner”. We hope you find this information of interest, as you will probably know or have heard of some of the individual Silver Fox Advisors who made the organization what it is today.

The Silver Fox Advisor organization is celebrating its 40^th Anniversary this year, and over the course of the 2026 calendar year we will be sharing with you some of our history and memories in our Monthly Newsletter. Each month we will feature a brief write—up on some of the more historical highpoints of the past 40 years in this “Silver Fox Advisors’ History Corner”. We hope you find this information of interest, as you will probably know or have heard of some of the individual Silver Fox Advisors who made the organization what it is today.

In June and July, we featured what it has meant to be a Silver Fox Advisor from two of our longer serving members. This month we are highlighting our 40^th Anniversary Celebration Luncheon we held on Tuesday July 28, 2026, we held at Maggiano’s on South Post Oak.

On July 28, 1986 the Silver Fox Advisor filed a certificate of formation with the State of Texas and began its now 40 years of providing Advisory, Coaching, Consulting and Mentoring services to small and mid-size business across the Greater Houston area.

The original Mission of the Silver Fox Advisors reads: 

The objective of Silver Fox Advisors, Incorporated is to make available to the Houston business community the collective experience, knowledge, talent, and extensive contacts of a diversified group of proven, successful executives and entrepreneurs.

Today the Silver Fox Advisors Mission reads:

To serve Greater Houston Area business owners, helping them establish, grow, and prosper their businesses by sharing our collective wisdom through robust service offerings.

The verbiage in these two Mission Statements may be slightly different but the meaning, purpose and content are the same.

The Silver Fox Advisor members have freely given thousands of hours to Community and Business Organizations across Houston through participation in the form of leadership training, mentoring, and support of programs and activities. Some of the Outreach Programs the Silver Fox Advisors are most proud of are the relationships and partnerships with the following:

In addition, over these 40 years, the Silver Fox Advisors have been led by 29 individual members who have served as Presidents of the organization. Programs and initiatives that the Silver Fox Advisors have rolled out to the business community

over the past 40 years include:

Silver Fox Advisors are proven business leaders and entrepreneurs who for 40 years have been giving back to businesses and communities by advising, coaching, consulting, and mentoring in Outreach Programs across the Greater Houston Area.

Silver Fox Advisors are celebrating 40 years in operation in 2026. Our members are proven business leaders who advise, consult with, and mentor other business leaders, CEO Roundtables, and entrepreneurship programs. We would love to be of assistance to you and your business. For more information, visit: www.silverfox.org  or call 713.467.5900

Business Tips From the Editor - "The Mountain Looks Too High To Reach the Top"

BUSINESS TIPS FROM THE EDITOR

August 2026

Richard T. Hendee, Editor
The Silver Fox Advisor

                          “The Mountain Looks Too High To Reach The Top"

Too often, business owners get frustrated with all the issues facing their businesses that they know need to get done, some of which might even save time or generate more bottom-line profits.

I often suggest to business owners a few things they should consider doing to help reduce some of their frustrations and maybe get them into a better place emotionally and hopefully financially. 

The first thing I suggest is to make a list of the issues they think they are facing. Next, rank these issues according to importance to the business’ bottom line (usually making more money, or in some cases even making money, is a key driving factor). Then, put the less important issues on a separate list, labeled just that (“Less Important Issues”). The list hopefully now is much shorter (keep in mind if everything is important then nothing is important). Now, grade the remaining issues by the degree of importance, then make the most impact to the bottom line. 

Starting with the Number One issue, begin breaking down what needs to happen to get that issue resolved and work to focus on that issue, and that issue mainly, over the next 60 to 90 days. If after the 60 to 90 days is over and the issue still is not resolved, it might be a good idea to bring some level of expertise to the table. 

Let’s think positively and assume the issue is resolved in the 60-to-90-day period; now it’s time to move on to the next issues on the priority list and repeat the process until the list has been reduced to a manageable level. If that can not happen in a year, the business just may need a full-time advisor, coach, consultant, or mentor to assist in the process. 

If you are a small business owner and your business issues are getting to be overwhelming, think about tackling the bigger issues first and one at a time and not trying to herd all the cats in the neighborhood into one room at the same time. Think about seeking advice from one of our professional Silver Fox Advisors who can guide you as you work on your list of issues. We encourage you to visit our website at www.silverfox.org.  There, you can learn more about selecting a Silver Fox Advisor whom you can engage to assist you.