The Last Lecture

Well friends, this is my last lecture. The Intro to Entrepreneurship class that I’m taking, that has pushed me write this blog, is ending. So I wanted to share with you the impact that it has had on me.

I absolutely loved this class. It was my favorite class and I got the best grade in it compared to all my other classes! I just ate up everything we were taught.

Overall it became very important and prevalent to me that it is okay to fail. I have created a mental barrier in my mind that has prevented me from accomplishing my dreams in the entrepreneurial world. I am so afraid of failure. I am afraid that I won’t be able to provide enough for my family. I am afraid no one will want my services or products. I am afraid I will be looked down upon because my skill isn’t good enough. But I am learning that even despite all of those things, it is okay to try. And even more than that, it is important to try.

I also became aware of the importance of having a mentor and/or professionals that you talk with and surround yourself with. There are so many people who have blazed the trail before and know what is up ahead for us. Altogether they have made all the mistakes. They know the right path and the wrong path. So if you can go out of your way to interview and truly apply the things that they tell you and teach you, you will be way ahead of the game.

Another great and essential, and sometimes obvious, habit we should be getting into the habit of is goal setting. We need to have a vision of what we want to be and what we want to accomplish. Once we determine what those things are, we should be setting specific goals. Not vague or applicable to any situation goals, but real and specific goals. Goals and setting ethical guardrails, will help us and allow us to stay on the set out path the we have set out to accomplish.

One last thing I want to mention is believing in yourself and inviting someone you love and trust, like a spouse or sibling etc., to help you along your journey. It is so key that you believe and trust in yourself. If you don’t think you can do it, you will send out the vibe and energy that you won’t. And guess what… you won’t! But as you move forward, believing 100% that you can make whatever it is happen, you truly will be successful.

I know that as we move forward setting goals, believing in ourselves, take a mentor along the trip with you, and know that it is okay to fail, then we will take those failures and all the skills I just mentioned, and be 100% successful!

Love, Gratitude and Giving

Overall this week I have learned quite a few things.

First of all, I have learned and reinforced the need to love what you do. There are absolutely going to be times where I will want to take a break or get stressed out by what I am doing. But that is okay, because there is a reason it is called "Work". Also, I don't have to settle for a "first job" in my career that I am expecting to hate. I have every right to find a job I will enjoy even if it only lasts a few years and I find something greater later.

Second of all, I have learned the importance of gratitude inside and outside the workplace.

Accentuate the positive;

Eliminate the negative.

Latch on to the affirmative;

Don’t mess with Mr. In-between.

I had learned this little poem growing up but I had totally forgotten about it. When we focus on the positive and stop thinking about the negative. When we focus on what we can control rather than worrying about what we can't, we are more able to give joy and positivity. People will be drawn to us and we will be happier.

Third of all, I have learned the importance of giving. My best friend and her sister have started their own Lularoe company. I had seen a few people dip their toes in this and have it not work out the way they wanted. But I have also witnessed my best friend and her sister not just dip their toes in my jump into the deep end and work their butts of to be successful! They told me that for ever 5 pieces they sell, they should be giving one away. This has proven to be a huge truth! Along with the gratitude that they have and express in their business they are so giving. They are currently doing a 12 days of Christmas Give away. The giveaways are not for we customers, but they are for us to nominate someone in need. 

I have previously mentioned charisma and they certainly have it! They are real, personable, friendly, loving and very generous. They are a great example to me of a successful entrepreneurship.

Personal Preference

I was impacted quite a bit by Sheryl Sandberg and what she had to share.
She jumped around to a few different companies but her motivating factor in anything she did was that she "really wanted to work on things that mattered." She wanted "to make a difference, and make someone else's life better..."
She eventually went to work for Google because it was a tiny company (back then) that wanted to bring the worlds information and make it accessible to as many people as they could. I love that initiative. She then went to Facebook because they had a very specific mission. Their mission was to: Give people the power to share and make the world open and more connected.
He wanted to get rid of all the anonymity through the web and make it more personal.
Personally I am grateful for the ability Facebook gives me to share personal experiences that I believe will help another along the road of life, and also to keep personal and intimate relationships with my friends and family.
I want to give the same type of feeling in my future business. I want to make a difference in the lives of as many people as I can. I want to provide a service that brings joy to others and leaves them wanting to come back for more and inviting their family and friends to be a part of it as well.

I look forward to implementing my own mission statement into my future company that invites people to participate and feel like they are receiving a personal service.