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Remember when success was a good thing? And what it was like before successes and business owners were demonized by political leaders? Remember when people could talk about their successes and ambitions openly?

My favorite opening line when I visit with contractors has always been, 鈥淗ow鈥檚 business?鈥� But for the last few years it was delivered with a much more sympathetic tone because it was met time and again by the lowering and shaking of a head.

No one, it seemed, wanted to talk about business. If business was bad, it made them too sad and/or angry to discuss. If business was good, it seemed to make them feel guilty to the point that they could only speak of it in hushed tones and private conversations.

There are still a few folks who answer, 鈥淕et me more work.鈥� But most contractors now reveal conservative optimism.

When I ask the question now it is like ambition and success are, at very least, on the positive side of the emotion-meter. I get a lot of 鈥減retty goods鈥� and a fair number of 鈥渨e have backlog.鈥� I am even hearing people talking about 鈥渇inally retiring鈥� and not in the 鈥淚 guess I will shutter the place鈥� kind of way.

Businesses have enough equity that buyers are interested and able to let those owners really consider cashing out. In fact, I think there will be several surprise retirements come the first of the year.

Are we all where we want to be? No.

We are single-digit percentage points off the floor of the worst economic downturn in our regional industry鈥檚 history. But instead of dreadful layoffs, employers are struggling to find the quality and qualified employees they need without over investing.

鈥淏ut John, the national numbers are still bad, unemployment is still high and we are hearing talk of more recession鈥︹��

To which I say, Oregon was hit harder and earlier than our share of the economy suggests we should have been. This has led to slow growth 鈥� but in a way that is leading the nation and not trailing it. In fact, many of the national concerns about low-level performance mirror what we saw here in 2011 and not today.

Is it still the construction comeback that Intel built? Yes, but who cares how it arrived? It鈥檚 here!

So many of the more conservative folks in the crowd will now say, 鈥淛ohn, you aren鈥檛 supposed to talk about ambition and success.聽 How can we beat Obama if you make it sound like things are going well?鈥�

To which I say, it ain鈥檛 that good yet.

So many of the more liberal folks in the crowd will now say, 鈥淛ohn, you aren鈥檛 supposed to talk about ambition and success. How dare you imply that business owners should make more money?鈥�

To which I say again, it ain鈥檛 that good yet.

This fall鈥檚 elections will be spirited and interesting. Vote with your conscience, but keep in mind that the administration is much more than one person. It is agency heads appointed to do what they think is right. That includes a National Labor Relations Board that is not exactly business-friendly and environmental agencies that all too often aren鈥檛 interested in finding balance between jobs and environmental protection.

And it is cities that choose winners and losers instead of letting competition and innovation bring the best product forward. It is also legislators who aren鈥檛 exactly prioritizing private-sector job growth.

My call to action this month is to be ambitious. Vote for business. Vote for jobs. Vote for success.

John Killin is president of the Associated Builders and Contractors鈥� Pacific Northwest chapter and executive director of the Independent Electrical Contractors of Oregon.