Last Lecture

So the course, or perhaps journey has finally concluded. If you have been following my posts you are aware of the different lessons and incredible principles learned in this course. This journey is one that I have cherished and learned so much from. Being an entrepreneur is about so much more than what I had originally envisioned. Being an entrepreneur is about having standards and a vision. The mentors who I have learned from are all people who had an idea or plan and built on it. The life of an entrepreneur is hard. It is so hard to find a balance between running a business and living a family life, but it is remarkably rewarding when the balance is struck. If you are wondering if the life of an entrepreneur is for you consider these helpful questions:
-Do you want to make a difference in the lives of others?
-Are you ready to gather mastery over yourself?
-Are you ready to handle trials and challenges that will make or break you?
-Do opportunities and uncharted territory of business excite your or intrigue you?
If you answered yes to any of these questions then perhaps it's time for you to consider taking the journey of a lifetime and become an entrepreneur. I wish to share something with you. When I started this class I was having an identity crisis. I grew up believing I knew who I was, but certain events in my life led me to believe I was someone else. Throughout the last 14 weeks I struggled with finding myself once again. As this course is over and I have been inspired by the various examples I feel I have gathered a sense of who I am and how to ensure I never question myself again. What I stand for is stated in my personal constitution I made for myself. This has helped me establish a knowledge of who I am. I urge you to try it for yourself. Whether you want to be an entrepreneur or not, choose to take this journey. It is not so much about being a CEO as it is about becoming who you are meant to become. I can promise that if you choose to do so you will be blessed. This journey is for those who want to reach their full potential. If you are expecting it to be easy then it is not for you. If you are ready to find yourself then welcome to the club and get started.

Heroes are at home

As I am coming closer to the end of this course I feel I have gained something I don't usually gain from other courses. I have my thoughts and impressions recorded from each week since I started which has been an incredible blessing. I have had the chance to truly meditate and learn the material. I am so grateful for being able to do that with the material in this course. This week was an exceptional week with an in-depth case study on a man named Randy Haykin. He has a vast career from Apple, to Yahoo!, and Paramount, he really knows his way around the work field. What is even more impressive about him is his persistent and hard work balancing his family life, spirituality, career as an entrepreneur, and being an overall good person. He faced a big hurdle trying to maintain a happy and healthy family, but he is adamant about tuning his life so that he can have a happy family. That is a priceless lesson to me. It is not easy to have a family and be an entrepreneur, but he manages to keep his priorities in check and that's what makes him a great responsible man. I am grateful for getting to study his life.

What It Means To Be A Hero

This week was a packed and interesting week. I've been asked to answer a few questions regarding an article I read about economics.

• Based on what you read in the first two pages (pages 3 and 4), why are virtue and integrity so vital to an economy?

     Virtue and integrity are vital because that is what this economy is based on. We have become so caught up in trying to get ahead and become something more for nothing that we lose sight of the morals we originally acted on. We must choose to display these qualities to make our economy an honest place to do business.

• According to Charles Handy, what is the "real justification" for the existence of businesses?

      I am not 100% sure, but I believe the answer would be that the rich get richer. I sense a strong sense of negativity towards those who lie, cheat, and deal dishonestly. These people seem to run business, but they are not fit to do so. It is sad, but that is why we need more truth and honesty. 

 

     Questions like these were some of the difficult and challenging moral dilemmas we deal with. My biggest learning experience this week was finishing the book "A Field Guide for the Hero's Journey". This book was excellent and full of simple concepts and principles that most of us have learned, but many of us forget. The book is progresses through old stories like "King Midas" and "Icarus". These stories have commentary surrounding them providing each story with some insight and an idea of what should be taken from them. This makes the concepts and principles excellent ways to improve ourselves as people and I am so grateful for what I have learned. This has been my favorite book thus far.

What Does Money Do?

This week was another challenging, insightful, and spiritual journey  into entrepreneurship. Rarely is there a dull moment and I feel as though I am truly learning things of great worth. One of the many learning moments I had was on a couple of case studies that rather difficult to find answers for. I studied two separate scenarios and was asked to come up with answers to each issue. The first scenario I was asked to answer was me being put in the role of a father. In this role I have a daughter who has a dance recital that I have been promising for weeks I will attend and "wouldn't miss it for the world". An hour before the recital I get a call from my best customer that there's been a fire and I am wanted in person immediately. If I do not go I will lose the customer. I struggled with this, but I quickly realized I made a promise to my daughter and cannot break it. If I do she would grow up knowing I don't keep promises. My family is more important to me then a customer. In a second scenario I am a football coach (whose name I forget at the moment). I am finally moving up in my position as a coach and am asked to coach a high profile team. The same day my wife files divorce papers and threatens to move with our daughter if I don't change my profession. I am on the road too much and the wife doesn't want that kind of life. My answer to this was more difficult, but I still had one. I would try and reconcile things and see if we could work things out. If not then I would pray, but most likely find another job. I wouldn't lose my family over a career choice. These scenarios taught me important lessons in my life. I will always do what I think is right for the most important people in my life. Another valuable topic is an article I read titled "Attitude On Money". This reading was well presented and offered a logical look at how money isn't evil or good, but rather dependent on how an individual uses it. I am in agreement with this mind set. Money is not good or evil, but it is a symbol of how we live. If we waste our money then we waste our resources. If we use our money to better the lives of the people around us, or use it to stay financially stable then I believe we are using it wisely. If we live believing that money is good or bad then we limit our potential to use it and see it for what it really is. I think as long as we use it the way the Lord would have us use it we are in the right and have successfully used it. These things are so valuable and we must never lose sight of these truths.

Dream Big For the Right Reasons

This week was another great lesson. Even if my posts start to sound the same, I assure the reader of this blog I am learning something new each week. I can't quite express the gratitude I feel for each new lesson or nugget of truth learned that helps me on my path to achieving my goals and dreams. The main focus for me this week was on an interview I conducted with a local entrepreneur. This was an assignment, but I found it to be very insightful and applicable to my personal life. The things I learned in my time talking with this entrepreneur helped me realize the purpose of why I want a good job. I realized that I want to be successful so that I may provide for a family, and help maintain a good healthy lifestyle. With this in mind it makes choosing a job a little more specific. It causes that a more careful examination be placed upon what we choose for a profession. This is a lesson I can see myself using in day-to-day life. It helps me assess whether or not I am on the right track. God wanted me to have this interview to learn this lesson, and for that I am truly grateful.

Strength in Trust

This week I felt a strong emphasis of trust in the material I studied. Trust is vital to success in business. Trust is what bonds employees and employers together, and offers a solid relationship to make successful strategies. With this principle in mind we can better ourselves and those around us by showing others the courtesy of trust. It isn't easy to do so in this world, but without it, it becomes significantly harder to produce good and effective results. It is so important to lead by example. One example of trust that I found very insightful this week is a video of Guy Kawasaki titled "Aspects of Building Trust". In this presentation Guy refers two types of people as an "eater" and a "baker". The "eater" represents someone who is concerned with only helping themselves, while the "baker" is concerned with helping everyone he can. I think this concept is excellent at portraying what kind of attitude is most effective. If we have the attitude of helping everyone we will be significantly more successful, both in our personal lives and our careers, than we otherwise would. We must be willingly to help and trust others and we can trust we will receive that treatment in return. I feel strongly that following this counsel will make our world a more kind place to live.

Never Give Up

This may seem like a somewhat strange post to see for a student studying business, but I feel the lesson I learned this week cannot be overstated or looked over. Never give up. Seemed to be the theme of the material I studied this week. It was very important to me. What I think is interesting is that this lesson was exactly what I needed in my personal life right now. Being an entrepreneur involves all aspects of life, not just being business focused. That's perhaps one of the most crucial lessons I have learned. Entrepreneurs are humans, and as such they can get bogged down by life and other things. Never giving up is just as crucial for an entrepreneur as it is for anyone. Knowing when to get back up and keep enduring is vital to life and business. It is the only sure way of keeping afloat in the world we live in. Putting our faith in God is imperative to staying strong. As I read  Jeffery R. Holland's talk and watched his video "Good Things To Come" I was inspired that no matter what life throws at us we can always persevere. This has been the most inspiring lesson I've had. I'll not soon forget the wisdom I have learned.