The End Is Near

This week in class we learned about and discussed our trials and errors.  Entrepreneurs are in good company with many now famous people who have tried and failed at many endeavors but through their trials and errors have persevered and gone on to be successful. 

Steve Jobs dropped out of college after six months because he didn't want his working class parents to have to put so much money into his education.  I probably would have gone to a different school but Jobs slept on the floor of his friends apartments and sat in in different classes being taught at Reid College for eighteen months.  He gleaned a lot of information from these classes that he used to start his business.  After he was fired from Apple he didn't give up he kept going.  He said it was probably one of the best things to happen to him.  After being fired he started NeXT, and Pixar and also was married and had a family. 

Many successful people have become that way because of the trials that they have faced and the times that they have failed but have not given up.  The only time we fail is when we give up.  It was mentioned that Thomas Edison made over 5000 light bulbs before he got it right.  That is really perseverance.  Many times our greatest trials bring our greatest rewards. 

I enjoyed doing the $100 challenge.  It was hard in many ways but it helped me to think about all the work that goes into starting a business and how many things you need to do.  Tom Null said that we need to be calculated risk takers.  We need to know about out product and do our research.  He said we should not just jump out there.  I think this is true but that we need to remember to "Jump".  We need to not be afraid of failing.  I think that the information that I learned in this course will help me if I go into business or not.  Right now we are working to change our business and what I have learned has been very valuable to us and has helped us.  It is fun to try something new and to have new challenges. 

Action Hero:  Tom Nall

When I first opened this week’s action hero video it was interesting to see a gentleman with a cowboy hat on.  He didn’t look like many of the other action heroes we have had in the past.  Tom Nall started his career selling life insurance.  One of his clients was a company named Fowlers Chili.  One day when he was talking to them about their insurance they offered him a job in sales and marketing.  Nall believes in being a risk taker and he said that we should not be afraid to fail so he took that job.  He worked there for 35 years.  Later he decided to go into a partnership with Ken Mackenzie to make a one hundred percent organic tequila called Republic Tequila.  Nall says that he was “born in Mexico and raised in Texas” so these were good fits for him.  Nall believes in wholesome core values and has a passion for providing opportunities for his team to make their mark on the industry. 

Tom Nall says that you need to be optimistic to a fault.  He said that the number one rule is the golden rule and then honesty, integrity and hardwork.  He wants people to work for him who want to do better at work and in their lives outside of work.  He said he didn’t just jump into a business he knew about the product and researched it before he decided to start.