My Entrepreneur Journal

This week was a very wonderful week of learning. I loved the study materials, even though I did worse on the quiz than on any other one. Sometimes it goes that way. I absolutely loved the talk from President Hinckley. It was very powerful to remember that I had heard that talk again before as a 15 year old girl. I remember his direct advice about what to avoid and how to have a happy life. There are lines from that talk that I could distinctively remember as I watched it when I was 15. In many ways I am so thankful for my 15 year old self for taking that advice to heart and doing the best I could with it. I was able to be married in the temple and have a family that was sealed together. That has brought be the happiest and most joyful times of my life, but it would not have been a possibility if I had not heeded the words of advice and warning from the prophet. In many ways we are not able to get a great perspective where we sit currently. When the Guy Kawasaki talked in his video ab...

I feel like this week we really started digging into some of the strategies of being a good entrepreneur. I thought that there were some great action items that I could take from the readings to apply to my entrepreneurial ideas and really start heading in a good direction. One of the things that I liked about this week was the idea that you need to do your background work but then you also need to start somewhere. I also was impressed with the idea that you likely will need to make peace with the notion of raising funds for your business. I do not know why this was such an eye opener for me, but it really was. It always seems like people just bring these successes to life and I have never really thought about the fact that securing funds is just a part of it. When I think back on all of the success stories from other people, most had to secure funding before they could get their ideas off the ground. Another key component with this is the fact that you have to have skin in the game as...

Skill, Character or Luck? Those were some serious things to ponder about this week. I liked that there was a focus on the fact that it probably takes a little of each thing, but it mostly takes a lot of focused work and direction. One of the parts of the course that had the most impact on me this week was the short video clip by Randy Komisar. He talked about how becoming hyper focused on what we are passionate about and what is the ultimate mark we want to leave on life can be paralyzing. This was something that I have felt. When you try and narrow that focus down to one point, it can make you quit before you start. I like the advice to marry your opportunities with your passions, and look toward the horizon. This seems like much better advice. You really can only look back and make sense of your career path in the rear view and not the windshield. One of the other great points this week was from Dan Freidberg when he was talking about how entrepreneurs typically don't make mil...

I think this week has led me to a couple of big revelations. From the activities that I have been participating in this class, and also the humbling experience I am having taking Macroeconomics and Managerial Accounting. First is that I get discouraged too easily and sometimes I let fear of failure cause me to stop in my tracks. After doing the fear worksheet, I realized that the root of my worries is usually focused in the wrong area, like looking stupid or having other people see me fail. I am going to have to get a thicker skin as it advised in the materials this week. I also have had an epiphany of sorts from a sad experience. My friend died this week of cancer. She was a single mom and her family situation is less than ideal. A few of her friends were tasked with cleaning their home while the family was at the hospital and funeral home. We were also asked by the family to sort her belongings into sentimental things, goodwill donations and garbage. As we worked the past few days,...

This week has been an eye-opening one. I would have to say that the biggest impression that has been left on me is that my life's experiences can be something that I can use to propel me forward as I continue on my career path. Too often I get bogged down in the fact that I have been out of the typical working game for nearly 14 years. This is something that discourages me when I think about the future because I do not see how my career will ever have the time it needs to take off and have real meaning. I want to do something with real meaning and not just punch a clock for the next stage of life. After listening to the videos and reading the case study this week, I am more excited about my future. I realize that none of the time I have spent is wasted. My abilities as a person have been extended, tested, and pushed to their limits in the past 14 years. It has made me into a finisher. It has made me into a believer in hard work. It has given me a front row seat to early childhood...