The Last Lecture

The Last Lecture

I’m really having a writer’s block as to what to write here. I have learned a lot about what it takes to be an entrepreneur. I’m even excited to tell the world that I can actually spell the word entrepreneur now! That was tough for me. Anyway, I guess one of the last things that I would want to say and leave a hefty impression to a class of baby entrepreneurs is, don’t underrate the importance of balance in life.

We only have one life. We have one chance to live, once chance to love, one chance to explore, and once chance to get it right. All of us have to go through the inevitable. We will all die and return to our greater purpose. It is important to be successful in how we provide for our families, but providing for your family is an earthly thing, not eternal. Families are eternal. Relationships are eternal. Knowledge is eternal. Testimonies are eternal. These are things that we need to remember to set aside daily time for. Nothing else matters.

I’m sure we have all had experiences that teach us how short life is. I sure have. There was a time in my life when I felt like my house needed to be perfectly clean. I felt my children needed to be in every sports team, every chess club, and they all needed to be an Eagle Scout. I needed to be involved in all their classes, coach cross country, and lead the young women in our ward to higher and better heights than all the other wards. But, in a matter of literally seconds, I learned that one of my children was dying. After 3 years of trying to save his life, he took his last breath. Suddenly, everything that used to be important to me meant nothing. Things that I spent a lot of time doing suddenly seemed pathetic.

Our careers are important. Knowing how to do them the best we can is important. Choosing something to put your heart and soul into brings a feeling of pride and success. But never forget what is eternal. Things that are eternal deserve the time and attention to fully develop them. Things of eternity are the things that truly bring joy.

Because of my life experience, this would be my last lecture I would want to give to my baby entrepreneurs.

Week 13

This week we learned more about life long learning and getting over hurdles. Our world is constantly changing. If we cannot change, learn, and grow with it, we will get left behind. Randy Haykin utilized his opportunities of learning and growth for his benefit. By using these opportunities, he created stepping-stones to a greater career in the long run. Life long learning seems to be a common attribute between entrepreneurs. As I read about different successful entrepreneurs, it is common to see that they have taken 3 steps forward and 1 step back, and then again, 3 steps forward and 1 step back. The people, who see those step backs as failures, usually are the people that give up. But, when you see the step back as a learning opportunity for growth. That is an entrepreneur’s spirit. The entrepreneur can see that he still moved forward. This is life long learning. I know that if I use this example life long learning, it will help me throughout my career as well. I must be willing and able to learn the new things that our world is constantly capable of.
 

In the article What's a Business For? I learned that virtue and integrity are vital to the economy because they are what make an economy a great and thriving. The economy works on rules and the rules depend on trust and honesty. If there isn't trust, then you see events such as The Great Depression.
 

Handy says in the article, “The purpose of a business, in other words, is not to make a profit, full stop. It is to make a profit so that the business can do something more or better. That ‘something’ becomes the real justification for business. Owners know this. Investors needn’t care.”

One solution I agreed with was that we companies need to be more honest in their reporting. This causes a lot of problems, and the general public looses their trust in business. 

The second solution I agreed with is that a company shouldn’t exist simply to make money. They should seek to make contributions to society. This doesn’t mean that businesses should give up trying to make a profit, it just means that they should have a more of a purpose.

Week 12

This week I have learned a valuable lesson. That valuable lesson is the importance of balancing your life. This week I began managing the largest hotel in our town. Not only do I have the learning curve of what it takes to manage such a business, but I have a learning curve on how to manage my life while many hours are taken away from it for work. I found myself being at work by 8am and not getting home till 8pm. This gave me only two house left in my day to nurture relationships, do my calling, read my scriptures, exercise, and all the other things I want to do in my life. By the end of the week I felt so overwhelmed with everything. For this next week, I am going to take some of the advice I read in the book A Field Guide For A Hero’s Journey and that is plan your rest. I need to realize that the hotel will still manage without me after 5pm. This way I will be able to go home and do the other things that are important for me as well. Time is a God given gift. I need to organize it and use it wisely. That is the intention and goal for me this week. Thanks to this class, I read that book, and thanks to that book, I can see what steps I can take to become my own hero.

                      

Week 11

In this week’s lesson, we talked a lot about balancing work life with home life. I have some real feelings about this especially of late, because I began working full time. I am managing a Hampton Inn & Suites. Luckily, my children are grown and gone. I have a new appreciation for women who have to raise their children alone. I am realizing just how many hours there are in a day, and how many hours are taken for my position in the work world. I have very little time now to get things done around the house, plan personal time, and plan time for things I love to do. I feel it to be a very delicate line to walk.

In our assignments we were asked to read the article, “Attitude on Money.” I suppose my attitude toward money is that it is a nuisance. I say that in the most respectful way, but the reason I say this is because money needs to be tended to all the time. We need to budget our money, pay our bills with money, put food on the table with money, we even need money to do something as simple as watch a movie. Weather we are watching a movie on television at home, or in a theater, you needed money to have that experience. Money is like a colicky baby. It makes itself known at all times and you need to tend to it constantly.

I suppose the way I view money affects the way I live because weather I have money or not, it affects behavior. Money, it can affect self-esteem, experiences in life, what friends you hang with, the type of clothes you wear, and the list goes on and on.

In the article, “Attitude on Money” there are rules for prospering. Those rules are:

1.     Seek the Lord and have hope in Him

2.     Keep the commandments. That includes the temporal ones, tithing and fast offerings.

3.     Think about money and plan how you can become self-reliant.

4.     Take advantage of chances for learning so you will not be ignorant of these matters. Education, as Pres. Hinckley has taught us, is the Key to opportunity.

5.     Learn the laws upon which the blessings of wealth are predicated.

6.     Do not send away the naked, the hungry, the thirsty or the sick or those who are held captive.

This class has been very good for me. It is opening my eyes about time, money, and work. I’m grateful for this opportunity to study these things.

Week 10

During my video lessons this week, a story was told. It goes like this:

An old Cherokee is teaching his grandson about life. “A fight is going on inside me,” he said to the boy.

“It is a terrible fight and it is between two wolves. One is evil – he is anger, envy, sorrow, regret, greed, arrogance, self-pity, guilt, resentment, inferiority, lies, false pride, superiority, and ego.” He continued, “The other is good – he is joy, peace, love, hope, serenity, humility, kindness, benevolence, empathy, generosity, truth, compassion, and faith. The same fight is going on inside you – and inside every other person, too.”

The grandson thought about it for a minute and then asked his grandfather, “Which wolf will win?”

The old Cherokee simply replied, “The one you feed.”

This led me to think about what wolf I am feeding. Our thoughts are so powerful. We truly become what we think. Sometimes, I feel I am feeding the good wolf yet leaving some scraps for the evil wolf to devour. Unfortunately, it seems the evil wolf can survive on a lot less food than the good wolf. Therefore, the evil wolf should not be feed at all. Not even scraps. This will allow the good wolf to grow stronger and stronger, and then, finally so strong that the evil wolf has no more power.

This is a conscious battle. At first, you need to be completely aware of the battle going on so you can feed the right wolf. But, the positive of this, eventually it won’t be so conscious. Eventually, the good wolf will be so strong that the effort to choose to feed the good wolf will overpower the evil wolf without you even trying.

Week 9

This week in my entrepreneur class, we talked a lot about being leaders. I really like the lesson about leading with a small L. Leadership isn’t about being the boss. It’s about guiding a group of good people that may or may not have a skill set better than your own. It’s about trusting others to be trusted.

I also liked the example of bakers versus eaters. This example begins with the statement that there are two types of people in this world, bakers and eaters. The eaters of the world are people that can only think about how much pie they are getting and wanting more pieces of pie. The bakers are the people that find the opportunity to create or bake pie always. They are constantly looking for reasons to bake more pies. The take away from this is to be the baker. This way you can look outward as apposed to inward.

Another phrase I learned from is the phrase given by Carly Fiorina. She said that the best thing you can be capable of is to ask questions and hear the answers. She suggests to always keep learning. She said the difference between a “young” 60 year old and an “old” 60 year old is the fact that the young one kept learning all their life.