This issue is about people who dreamed and then took steps to bring their dreams to reality.
Let’s look at two cases of business challenges:
A) For those of you who already have business or just got burned in one great firework: Our first episode is about people who fell off the horse many times, but got back on the saddle quickly.
B) For ordinary people with simple plan that produced millions.
Which one is you?
A) First: Rising from the Ashes:
1.Steve Jobs (1955) who reminds us that we have to stay ahead of the curve:
Quote: "You can't just ask customers what they want and then try to give that to them. By the time you get it built, they'll want something new."
Burning : After his forced resignation from Apple in 1985, Jobs spent the following several years developing NeXT, a computer workstation for educators. But with a high price tag and reports of numerous bugs, sales never materialized. The company burned through hundreds of millions of investor dollars.
Rising: Apple announced it would buy NeXT in 1996, bringing Jobs back to the company as interim CEO. He's since developed the iPod and iPad, making Apple one of the most successful Fortune 500 companies of the past decade.
Lesson: Having the right resources and people around you makes a big difference.
2. My personal hero: John Lasseter (1957)
Quote: Every single Pixar film, at one time or another, has been the worst movie ever put on film. But we know. We trust our process. We don't get scared and say, 'Oh, no, this film isn't working.’
Burning : After going through the ranks at Disneyland and then as animator, Lasseter realized the power of computer in producing 3-D cartoons and the huge potential of this new technology in animation to add a new, visually stunning depth that had not been conceived before.
As the story goes, “Lasseter may have stepped on somebody’s toes by circumventing him in his enthusiasm to get the project into motion, because of that same potentially great idea he was pursuing, Lasseter was terminated.
Rising: After being fired, Lasseter visited a computer graphics conference where he met his old contact for the project and made a deal to work as an "interface designer" with Catmull and his colleagues on a project that resulted in their first computer animated short: The Adventures of André and Wally B. It became even more revolutionary than Lasseter had visualized before he joined Lucasfilm. His original idea had been to create only the backgrounds on computers, but in the final short everything was computer animated, including the characters. After this short CGI film, things would continue to grow until it became Toy Story, the first ever computer-animated feature film.
Disney purchased Pixar in April 2006, and Lasseter was named chief creative officer of both Pixar and Disney animation studios. He was also named principal creative advisor at Walt Disney Imagineering, where he helps design attractions for Disney's theme parks.
Lesson: Nurture your network of friends. They can help your dreams.
3. Henry Ford (1863-1947)
Quote: "Whether you think you can, or you think you can't -- you're right."
Burning : Ford suffered a few failed automotive endeavors early in his career, including Detroit Automobile Co., which he started in 1899. Its cars were low quality and too pricey for average consumers.
Rising: Ford continued to develop better auto designs and gained national acclaim in 1904 by demoing a car -- the "Ford 999" -- that broke the land-speed record by going a mile in about 40 seconds. In 1908, he released the Model T, a well-made, low-priced car that quickly gained traction with U.S. consumers. Annual sales topped $250,000 by 1914.
Lesson: Building a brand requires more than just building a good product.
4. Walt Disney (1901-1966)
Quote: "You may not realize it when it happens, but a kick in the teeth may be the best thing in the world for you."
Burning : The cartoon animation pioneer weathered several major financial setbacks in the late 1920s and 1930s, including losing rights to the popular Oswald the Lucky Rabbit character. His company was $4 million in debt by the early 1930s.
Rising: With barely enough cash to finance the project, Disney released "Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs" in 1938. The blockbuster movie sprung the company out of bankruptcy and bankrolled the building of a new Walt Disney Studios in Burbank, Calif.
Lesson: One killer idea can quickly make up for a series of flops.
If you think these are not your typical business owners, think again. They are just like you—an individual with dreams that got someone professional to coach them in their business.
Still, look at them as giants because of their fame? Then you will find someone you can feel much more alike on the next blog to see the secrets of success for some of the new small business success stories.
Just check out the Evertte Bogue’s interview with Maren Kate. The sound is not great, but the content is very good.
Thank you Juan!
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