What I have learned

"Success consist of going from failure to failure without the loss of enthusiasm." -Winston Churchill
Some of the most successful people in the business world have failed over and over again and the reason we do not dwell on their failures is because their success has outshined all of it. If you are going to be a entrepreneur then you have to learn to embrace failure because each lesson will lead you to more success. Jeff Sandefer said "choosing the life of a entrepreneurial her begins with a paradox: you have to dream big but start with small steps. No matter how difficult this path gets I will continue to push forward step by small step until I have reached my goal. I will then set a new goal and begin the process again step by small step."
I believe the hardest part about becoming a entrepreneur is taking that first step, too many great ideas and great companies were never started because the dreamers feared failure and never took the first step. I have learned as a new father that my son fears almost nothing because he has not been taught what to fear either by experience or by someone teaching him to not do certain things. We can learn a lot from children as business leaders because children are brave, honest, and forgiving. Children will take a first step in almost anything and can fall into danger if not given the proper mentor or parent. Children will say anything to anyone because it is the truth and the truth is the greatest gift that everyone will try and take from us. Children are forgiving to anyone that does them harm almost instantly but they are most forgiving to themselves no matter how many times they have fallen and found trouble. If we could apply these simple lessons into starting a business we would have no regrets after taking that first step.
Everything I have learned these last few weeks from my classes and from interviewing and reading other business leaders failures and success is that time is the most valuable commodity we have, It is the only piece of our lives that we have full control over. "Time is free, but it's priceless. You can't own it, but you can use it. You can't keep it, but you can spend it. Once you've lost it, you can never get it back."-Anonymous. That is the key to a successful life is what we did with our time. Did we use all our time and energy to chase a dream and start a business? When that business failed did we spend all our time and energy doing everything we could to make it successful? Was that time we spent failing over and over again chasing our dream educational enough that when we try again we will do it better? Do not let time and fear take the what might have been when you look at your past. Let time and fear be your motivation of would could be in your future.

Leadership in life

"I think there is an emotional element to leadership-Charisma." By Randy Haykins.  

Leadership is the cornerstone of a great business no matter if it is small or large without leadership you have nothing. As we have studied different entrepreneurs throughout this semester I have come to love and admire the great leadership it takes to start a business.  

Randy Haykins also said "Leadership is identifying the future before it's happened. A good leader has more than vision, a good leader sees a endpoint. And then somehow garners sufficient resources around him or herself to work towards that end." I think of Steve Jobs when I read this quote because he started a computer company was then fired from his company he started. The company then struggles and bring him back and what does he do he changes the tech industry with the iPod, iPad, and the iPhone. A computer company that now leads in music, and telecommunications because a leader saw a future that no one else did and then surrounded himself with the resources to find the end. 

We are all destined to leave a footprint of our lives in this world we all want to be remembered. Some want to be remembered throughout time and by millions and millions of people, while others just want to be remembered by their loved ones and friends that they have done so much for. It is this drive that makes great leaders in business those that will do everything they can to leave a mark and if they fail or succeed they will just be happy they tried. 

Experience is Golden

I finished the book "A Field Guide for the Hero's Journey" by Robert Sirico & Jeff Sandefer. It is a collection of journey's from different people and what they have learned about life and business. Reading this book you have a chance to reflect and apply the lessons learned from these different chapters. 

Wanting to be a entrepreneur is a lot like this book and the different views we have about life. When you are a child you think your parents know everything because they can answer any question you ask them and you don’t know if it is truthful or not because you have complete faith in them. As a teenager you start to question what they know and start to think they are to old and do not understand that times have changed. As a young adult living on your own and supporting a family or serving a mission your parents gain a little more credit and you start to wonder how they handled life and their advice is welcomed but still cautious. When you have children your parents suddenly have all the answers and the most respect possible because you just don’t understand how they did knew so much. When you are old and frail you have suddenly become the genius and now your advice is valuable to your own posterity.  

Starting a business is the same way at first you think everyone has all the answers and you trust almost anyone, different experiences and time passes by you listen a little less and think you know everything. A success here and a failure there suddenly you seek the advice of those veterans that have been consistent at running their business. Before you know it your retiring and giving your own advice.  

We have to learn from those that are willing to teach us about business and proceed with caution and care. IF we are not willing to learn from those that have gone before us we will just fail over and over again because we think we know everything. 

Money will not buy Happiness, but Money will help you find Happiness.

"Money will not buy you Happiness" this is a phrase I have heard over and over again from anyone I complain to about my financial difficulties I may be having at that time. Is it true though cause when you have no money you often think that money will find you unlimited happiness because it will give you freedom. Yet the more I read that phrase when I have conquered my financial problems I understand it a little different.  

Money will not buy you happiness but if used correctly it will give you happiness that you could not find any other way. I have seen and felt the happiness that comes when you are able to help or serve someone who does not have money. I watched my father pay the medical bill of a family that was truly struggling and the tears of joy when they did not know where the money had came from. I have seen meals delivered to widows and single mothers that just did not have the means to buy the meal that they wanted to give their children and the tears of joy as their wishes were granted. Money may not buy you happiness but it will help you find happiness in the service of others. 

Truth be told as I have learned so far in this class most people are generally happy so having more money does not increase the amount of happiness we have. What we do with that money is what buys happiness because service has the greatest value over the longest time period and everyone can afford it, some more than others. So if you find that suddenly you have more money than you know what to do with and you have achieved most of the success you had always dreamed of but still do not fill happy or fulfilled. Then I would encourage you to share that wealth and success with others or help other reach their success. Happiness will come to those that love others more than themselves. 

Risks

"It's impossible said pride. It's risky said experience. It's pointless said reason. Give it a try whispered the heart."--Unknown 

My assignment for the last 2 or 3 weeks was to find a entrepreneur that I could interview and write a 3 page paper on my experience. This was assignment I was excited for because I feel we can always learn so much from others. I interviewed a close friend and ex co-worker who had started his own business. I had learned from him this was his second business he had started and that he sold his other business because it was just not challenging anymore. I was speechless because this friend of mine is 10 years younger than I am and already has owned 2 businesses. I learned so much from him and that we need to not be afraid to fail and take risks. He said he enjoys the moments of challenge and failure because that is where he learns the most. He said he never started a business in an industry he did not work and learn as much as he could from the most successful people in that industry. I have learned that I have made to many excuses as to why I can't do something and not enough reasons to why I can't do something. When I asked my friend before we ended the interview if this was a business he would sell and start over he did not even hesitate and said Yes as soon as it is not challenging anymore I will find a new business to start. 

Lead by example

“Great leaders don't blame the tools they are given. They work to sharpen them.” When I think of the great leaders I have had in my life I think of the way they inspired me to be better and to work harder. I would like to go over a few of the examples and meanings from a talk given by President Kim B Clark of BYU-Idaho that talks about Leadership with a small L.
Lead by Example- for this I always think of my Mother she taught me everything in life about being a worthy priesthood holder to loving and serving others but most of all her example of faith is what stands out. She has always had faith not only in God but in other people as well. She has taken in my friends to live with us for periods of time. Has pushed to get my brothers and sisters back active in the gospel. Has even pushed herself to pick up the pieces from a ugly divorce and move forward with faith she is my true example of leadership.
Lead by Vision- for this I think of my bishop who happened to be my youth league football coach for many years. He always believed in my athletic abilities and said I could go as far as my work ethic and heart would take me. He was also said the only person who believed I would go on a mission and would always invite me to youth activities and church. This meant a lot to a young boy who came from a less active family that did not always make the right decisions but he never lost vision of who I could become.
Lead with Love- for this I think of my Uncle Don who was a seminary teacher in Utah for over 39 years and was someone I could go to for anything. He always had the best advice and was there when I need love and guidance of what to do with my life. I could always feel the love of the Savior when I talked with my uncle and I always had a stronger testimony when I left then when I arrived.
We need to inspire others and be leaders in our days not by what we say but more by what we do. We will be tested more and more in the future and our faith and covenants will be called into actions are we willing to go against what is popular and stand up for what we believe? Are we willing to lead with the small L’s?

Learning from Failure

One of my favorite business leaders Henry Ford said “Failure is simply the opportunity to begin again, this time more intelligently”. I was taught this wonderful lesson as a child that making mistakes is human but it is our reaction and education from those mistakes that will determine if we are successful or doomed to fail. My assignment for the next few weeks is to interview a entrepreneur and I am excited because I get a chance to learn from someone that has all ready taken the risks to build a business all their own. Whenever I think of failure and failure in business I think of Thomas Edison and how many attempts he took to invent the light bulb. He tells everyone I did not fail 2,000 or more times I just found 2,000 or more ways of how not to do it. From my studies of successful people the real thing that holds people back from achieving their dreams are their fear of failure. My Father is retired now and always tells me how he wishes he would have started his own handy man business. He will ramble on for a good 15-30 minutes if how life could have been different if he had just went for it. I love my Father but I learned from his example and complaining that I will not let my fear of failure keep me up at night  in my later years thinking  what could have been. If I succeed or fail I will be humble and grateful that I took the first step on a great journey and learned as much as I could from my failures.