Back in 2008, as the owner of Camp Bow Wow, a fast-growing national franchise business, I was riding a tide of success. When the market took a downturn, I went from riding a tide of success to not knowing if we were going to make it. We, as a company, were forced to make very difficult decisions at that time to accommodate the shrinking revenues due to lack of capital and fear about starting a business. Some of those decisions cost people their jobs. I had to lay off 10 out of 40 of my staff — some of whom were very good friends and family members. We had 40 franchisees lose their financing for their franchise when the market crashed. Buckets of money vanished overnight. It was difficult to make these and other decisions, but I knew that if we did nothing, the whole company would suffer and perhaps fail.

That’s why I admire Carly Fiorina. Carly was the CEO of Hewlett-Packard during the most difficult time in tech history. When the tech bubble burst, the industry went into a tailspin. People who had become attracted to the booming market fled then in droves. Jobs were lost, companies dissolved, innovations and ideas withered away. It was so severe, in fact, that the industry has only just now in 2014 returned to the profit-heights it had before the bubble burst.

I say all this because it proves to me that Carly is a strong individual. She bore down when the industry stormed. She led her company through a tumultuous economy. Companies need a Carly to make decisions that are right — regardless of their popularity. She challenged the status quo and perhaps saved Hewlett-Packard from a tragic end. When you’re strong like Carly, when you challenge the status quo, you do meet resistance.

Unfortunately, that resistance manifested itself in a boardroom brawl. Sometimes, investors and boards are poor at seeing into the future. They only see the challenges around them, and they react. I believe that is what happened to Carly. It happens to great leaders every day. She had done many good things for Hewlett-Packard — making it more efficient, rewarding hard work and productivity, and cutting the fat — but during a rough season, some of HP’s leaders thought it wasn’t enough. The board fired Carly. But time has vindicated Carly. Market analysts and Hewlett-Packard executives have all credited her as being a vital part of the company’s history and strength.

Contrast Carly’s experience with Hillary Clinton’s. Government employees rarely have to worry about being fired or losing pay. There are little consequences to bad decisions. They can rack up $18 trillion in debt and not worry about the bottom line. Hillary never had to justify every decision she made to stakeholders as secretary of state. Instead, she hid behind a curtain of lies and finger pointing when her decisions were unsuccessful or she failed to act. Even today, when time has not vindicated Hillary, when the American public has clearly seen her to be a member of the professional political class we cannot trust, she fails to take responsibility. Hillary blames other people, or a video, or a set of extremists, or the vast right wing conspiracy.

Who would you rather have leading you in the White House? An honest, fresh face who has proven herself time and time again? Or the old, Washington elitist who cannot name a single accomplishment she achieved as a member of the president’s cabinet?

I can tell you who I’d rather have. I’d rather have Carly Fiorina.

Heidi Ganahl is CEO of Camp Bow Wow, an international pet care franchise based in Broomfield.