Last Lecture

After spending a mere semester learning about entrepreneurship, I hardly feel qualified to give a definitive lecture on the subject.  I have, however, learned a lot and a few key points have stayed with me.  I've learned how important it is to set ethical guardrails for yourself in place, to set clear and lofty goals, and to pro actively make a plan for keeping your life balanced.  I think that understanding and applying these key points will make a good beginning for any entrepreneur.

I've never been a blatantly dishonest person, but I've always been more of a cut-corners if you need to, make up your own rules kind of person.  Through case studies and lectures we read and watched in this class, I've realized how important it is to be exacting and honest.  I never saw myself as important enough for my actions to really impact the world, but now I realize that I've been given so many gifts, I really am in an elite group that has the potential to make the world a better place.  That makes all of my actions, even the small ones, feel more important.  It's important to commit to following God's laws as I understand them with exactness, to commit to not letting any other consideration change my behavior.  I'm reminded of a favorite quote from Jane Eyre,

     "I will keep the law given by God; sanctioned by man. I will hold to the principles received by me when I was sane, and not mad — as I am now. Laws and principles are not for the times when there is no temptation: they are for such moments as this, when body and soul rise in mutiny against their rigour; stringent are they; inviolate they shall be. If at my individual convenience I might break them, what would be their worth?"

I hope I always remember this, no matter where life leads me, no matter what temptations might come my way.

Another key principle I've learned this semester is the "stars and stepping stones" idea.  It's important to set lofty goals, and then set the smaller stepping stone goals that will lead to the far-off star.  My patriarchal blessing tells me to "set noble goals and pursue them with a clear and keen eye, knowing they will be affirmed through prayer by your father in Heaven if they are righteous."  As a young teenager I set a goal to be married in the temple, to be a righteous mother.  The Lord has helped me to achieve those goals, and they are, of course, ongoing.  In the last couple of decades, though, I don't think I've taken my Heavenly Father up on that challenge.  Now is the time to sit down and ponder what the next phase of my life will be, set those goals, and pray for affirmation.

Work/ life balance is a big issue for entrepreneurs, and even putting it like that vastly oversimplifies a complex life.  If we only had to balance two areas, that would be comparatively easy.  But work itself contains many sub-areas and competing priorities, as does a personal life.  I feel like God/spiritual life deserves equal billing at least in the equation.  Work life, personal life, spiritual life.  It's important to set guardrails here to protect the important areas that you can't afford to neglect.  After all, the work life is supposed to support the family/personal life, and the spiritual life is the engine that runs all of it.  It's important not to make the mistake that money is the only and over-riding value.

This is not a complete map to success, a wise man I know once said that in order to be successful monetarily, you have to obey all of the laws of success and money, ie. paying your tithing and being a good person does not guarantee business and financial success.  But these are foundational principles that need to be in place before pursuing the other laws of success.

Reflections

As this semester quickly draws to a close, I'm reflecting on how my ideas about my future business have changed.  I didn't really think of my plans as entrepreneurial.  I plan to work for myself, freelance, from home.  That didn't seem quite grand enough to take on the title of entrepreneur.  But I felt prompted to take this cluster of classes on entrepreneurship, and now I can see that's exactly what I plan to do.  Maybe I will decide to just freelance as a graphic designer, and that in itself is an entrepreneurial effort, but I've been inspired by this class to think a little bigger than that.  I have a friend who just started a business as a freelance writer focused on marketing.  She asked me to design her logo and business cards, and we worked really well together.  We both realized that our skills are complementary, and we've had some discussions about collaborating.  She has a vision for a full fledged marketing firm, and that might become my vision one day, too.  I'm excited about the possibilities.  My daughter is also interested in working with me, and that would make me really happy to be able to be successful enough that I could take her on as an associate.  I really appreciate all that I've learned in this class, and look forward to continuing my business education next semester. 

Microlending

I was most impressed this week by the article "Micro-Lending: Toward a Poverty Free World" by Muhammed Yunus.  I was impressed, first of all, but his honesty and humility in realizing that the "elegant theories" he taught students were at odds with the realities of the world around them.  I'm even more impressed that he went out into that world with a desire to learn the realities, and then followed through with something concrete he could do to improve the lives of those around him.  When he said that the forty-two people he talked to needed loans totaling $27, not much more than fifty cents each, I thought of the dollar bill that's been on my closet floor for a month.  I see it every time I put my clothes away, but I haven't bothered to pick it up because it's not that critical.  I'll get to it when I get to it.  To think that that one dollar bill could be a critical difference in changing two lives.  It's hard to imagine, I'd love to hear more specific stories about how these micro-loans are used, how they actually work in people's lives.  I'm also very impressed with Yunus' idea that greed is not the only motivating factor, but we've built all of our economic systems on the assumption that it is.  That's a paradigm shifting statement, and one I will think about for a long time.

In "What's a Business For?" Charles Handy says that integrity and virtue are vital to an economy because when "the game becomes so unreliable, no one will want to play."  If people don't trust the business world, they'll keep their money to themselves, and the whole thing collapses.  He says the real purpose of a business is not just to make a profit, but to make a profit so that the business can do something more or better.  I agree with his assertion that businesses need to take the lead in issues of environmental and social sustainability.  That only makes sense if you want your business to be profitable over the long haul.  I also agree with his assertion that a business should measure success in terms of outcome for others as well as itself.  At the very least, they should care about the outcome for their customers, which again, just makes sense in terms of sustainability over time.

Work Life Balance

I really enjoyed thinking about the questions posed in the mini case studies this week.  It was a good reminder to keep family the priority, and to stay realistic in your promises and expectations.  I think keeping the family a priority doesn't always mean sacrificing every career goal, but rather just to keep the lines of communication open. Pay attention when family members seem unhappy, and look for ways to show them they're loved.  This week I realized that my youngest was feeling neglected with me being so busy with schoolwork, so I made a special effort to take time to do things with him.  It might mean getting a B instead of an A, but I guess I'd rather have a B on an assignment than a failing grade as a mom.

The article about attitudes on money was interesting.  I think I've always had kind of a distrustful attitude about money, viewing the acquisition of it as shallow and greedy.  This class has helped me to see good examples of people who use their money for good.  I still think it's risky, I think that money tends to lure people more to the selfish side than the selfless side, but if you're firmly grounded in the gospel and listen to the promptings of the spirit, and surround yourself with good examples, it's a wonderful thing to acquire money, take good care of your family, and bless the world around you.  I also need to be honest, in that I like things that cost money, like good quality food, and hand made clothing.  I like the idea of being able to patronize people who make things by hand, and those things are always more expensive than mass produced junk.  If I had more money, I would enjoy the freedom to spend it on businesses who operate in alignment with my values, instead of always just looking for the lowest price.  

Entrepreneur Interview

I really enjoyed interviewing an entrepreneur this week.  The first person I set something up with didn't work out, so I had to be creative and persistent to get my interview.  I thoroughly enjoyed my talk with Carolyn Allen of My Miracle Tea.  She brims over with enthusiasm and confidence.  I'm touched at the generosity with which she shared her time.  As a student, mother, and homeschool teacher, my plate is full to bursting, so I'm acutely aware that time is our most valuable commodity.  I didn't take it lightly to ask someone to spend some time talking to me.  Carolyn got me all fired up, I can't wait until I'm in her position, and I'm the one that gets to encourage someone else starting out.  For now, I really am getting into the mindset of myself as a professional, which was Carolyn's biggest recommendation.  A friend asked me to design a logo for her new freelance writing business.  I impressed her and myself even with how organized and professional I was about the whole project.  I worked really hard, and we're both happy with the results.  I learned a lot, it built my confidence, and I have something to add to my portfolio.

Small "l" Leadership

I appreciated the opportunity this week to re-read President Clark's talk on small "l" leadership.  We read it during Pathway and it has stuck with me, often coming to mind.  Once you hear this concept, you start to examples all around you of big "L" vs small "l" leadership.  I have been blessed in my life to know many small "l" leaders, most of them in the church.  I know that I tend toward pride, it's one of my weaknesses, and I have made a concerted effort over my lifetime to follow our Saviour's example of humility.  At age forty, I can finally see that some of those efforts are becoming more second-nature.  I feel more of a willingness to submit myself to the will of the Lord, to the direction of others.  When I find myself in positions of leadership I feel more keenly the responsibility than the power.  I have learned that leading with love is the only way to get people to follow.  I still have a lot of work to do in this area, and I appreciate the examples I've seen and read about in the content of this class.  It has inspired me to hold myself to even higher standards of honesty, integrity, and to approach each task with determination to do my best.

Real Life Application

I look forward to every week when the new assignments for upcoming weeks open up.  I've been so inspired by all the readings and videos.  I had an opportunity this week to apply some of the things I've learned in this class when a job opportunity came up.  A former student had posted a job opening on a Facebook group for a developer, which I knew I wasn't qualified for.  But I felt prompted to click on it anyway, and I followed through on that prompting.  When I got to the company's website, I saw that they also have an opening for a designer, which I'm still not quite qualified for but I come really close.  I contacted the person who first posted the opening to find out more details, and then I spent a day working on my LinkedIn profile and my Behance portfolio, both of which were required to apply for the job.  I also followed through on a prompting to post about what I was doing to a group of friends on Facebook who are fellow homeschool moms.  Several of them are ten years or more older than me and I've watched them start to go through this process of moving into the world of paid work, and framing their decades of full time mothering as an asset to potential employers.  Several of them offered good advice, and one in particular was very helpful with my resume.  Before taking this class, I would have never followed that first prompting to click on a job opening I wasn't qualified for, would never have been brave enough to share what I was doing and ask for help, and would never have dared to apply for a job that is a bit of a stretch.  Whether I'm hired or not, I'm so glad that I applied and went through the process of starting to work on how to present myself to potential employers.  That is also something I've learned from this class, just because an experience doesn't have the outcome you thought you wanted, doesn't mean it was a waste.  It can be just another steppingstone on the path you were meant to follow.

Sharpening the Saw

I really enjoyed reading and learning about the 7 habits this week.  The habit that is most meaningful for me right now is sharpening the saw.  I like how he divides it into four areas: physical, spiritual, mental, social.  Physically, I've been working on getting more regular exercise, and I can see that it makes an important difference in my energy levels.  Spiritually, I know that reading my scriptures, writing in my journal, and taking time for service are things that help me "keep the saw sharp."  Mentally, going to school right now is helping me grow.  I feel confident that even when I'm done with school that will continue, because I was always learning things before I started school.  In homeschooling my children, learning has just become part of our family culture, our lifestyle and an ingrained habit.  The last area, social, is probably the one I need the most work on.  I'm an introvert, and I'm really happy spending lots of time alone.  I do have times when I want to be with other people, though, and when those times come I usually find that people aren't around because I haven't taken the time to cultivate relationships outside of my husband and children.  I will spend some time praying and journaling about how I can strengthen this area.

Balancing Work and Family

The things that stood out to me most from the videos and readings this week was Steve Blank answering the question about how to balance work or family life.  I found it amusing that someone asked him, "From your perspective as a woman..."  He's not a woman, so he can't speak from that perspective.  I think it shows how male-centric that whole world is.  But he had a good answer, and in giving his answer he tacitly reminded them that women are not the only ones who have to balance family and career, fathers have a responsibility to be present in their children's lives, too.  He said that he made it a rule that he would always have dinner with his kids, and put them to bed.  Afterwards he would work from home several more hours, but he was there during those key times, sacrificing his sleep instead of their childhoods.  He also spent Saturday with them, taking them to work half a day, and then spending the rest of the day away from work with them.  It made me realize that I need to set some of those absolutes, too.  My children are older, and I'm still a student, not an entrepreneur, but I find that keeping up with homework and doing my volunteer work for LDSHE can lead me to be tempted to ignore my family all evening.  After listening to this talk, I've decided that I need to commit to spending the time between dinner and bedtime with my family, and to not letting homework overtake my Saturdays.

Showing Gratitude by Living up to Our Privileges

This week was again an amazing journey, all of the readings were inspiring and thought provoking.  My key takeaway from the video "A Hero's Journey" was when he explained why he expects BYU Idaho students to change the world.  I think of myself as a pretty ordinary person, not someone destined to do great things.  But he pointed out that we have the gospel of Jesus Christ, as well as the privilege of living in the freest country in the world.  We're obtaining and education that melds those advantages together well.  It completely changed the way I view myself, and my children.  We may seem ordinary, but compared to people around the world and throughout history we have enormous advantages.  If we don't use those advantages to make the world a better place, who else can do it?  This really inspired me.  It reminded me of that ubiquitous but still inspiring Marianne Williamson quote:

          “Our deepest fear is not that we are inadequate. Our deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure. It is our light, not our darkness that most frightens us. We ask ourselves, Who am I to be brilliant, gorgeous, talented, fabulous? Actually, who are you not to be? You are a child of God. Your playing small does not serve the world. There is nothing enlightened about shrinking so that other people won't feel insecure around you. We are all meant to shine, as children do. We were born to make manifest the glory of God that is within us. It's not just in some of us; it's in everyone. And as we let our own light shine, we unconsciously give other people permission to do the same. As we are liberated from our own fear, our presence automatically liberates others.”

I tend to be shy about thinking of myself as anything special.  I love that reminder that my "playing small does not serve the world."  I appreciate Jeff Sandefer's reminder that I have been given enormous advantages.  "Where much is given much is required."  I hope I can live up to my privileges.

Personal Constitutions

Wow, this week was filled with some amazing principles.  I really loved the personal constitution exercise.    It was broken down into steps that made the task of writing a personal constitution less daunting, but following those simple steps yielded great insights.  I appreciated the opportunity to think deeply about what is important to me, and what my most important long term goals are.  I looked over my bucket list from a previous assignment, and realized that my list of fifty things all fell into just a few categories:  a deeper relationship with God, deeper and more unselfish relationships with those around me, developing my talents, taking care of my physical body, and learning to run my finances instead of being run by them.  It was wonderful to be able to take these areas that I feel like such a failure in, set some clear goals, and then break it down to concrete actions I can take every day that will lead to achieving those lofty goals.  It was also interesting to note that when I brought those goals down to a daily level, I realized that a key step for every single one of them is to pray to the Lord for help.  I recognize that I can't achieve these things on my own strength, I need the power of the Atonement to help me be better and stronger than I am on my own.

The Formula

The videos and writings this week were again very inspiring.  I especially enjoyed reading in "The Ministry of Business" and watching the video with Brother Ritchie, whose story was told in that book.  I want to remember his formula:

1.  Get up early

2.  Work hard

3.  Get your education

4.  Find oil

5.  Make your mark

6.  Prepare to serve/ give back

Previous to returning to school, I rarely got up early.  I'm a night owl, and I would often come home from picking my daughter up from seminary and go back to bed.  Meanwhile, my husband, who stayed up just as late as I did, had taken my daughter to seminary and gone straight to work.  About halfway through my Pathway year, I decided that if he could get up and work that early, so could I.  Now, more mornings than not, I get up early, and I'm amazed at what I can accomplish.  Working hard is also something I've often tried to avoid.  My dad made us work hard in the yard and garden, and while my later employers appreciated my work ethic, my dad always felt like he could never get us to work as hard as he wanted us to.  I was always sneaking off to read a book- that's my bliss, is to hide out and curl up somewhere with a good book.  This summer I had the opportunity to go to Girls' Camp as a cook.  It was hard work, all day long.  Since I've been home, I find myself thinking, "If I could work that hard for other people at camp, I can work hard to take care of my family here at home."  So I've been working harder.  Number three, get your education, is obviously something I'm doing, and I'm so grateful to BYUI for the opportunity to do it.  I'm already applying the new things I've learned, serving others.  I know by the time I graduate, if I stay humble and prayerful, I will find my oil and be on my way to making my mark.

Planning and Dreaming

This week, reading the speech "What is Your Calling in Life" affected me the most.  There were several things there that really felt like they were directed at me.  He says that we need to pray and fast to discover our calling.  Even though I have made my decisions to go back to school and major in web design prayerfully, as I read that I felt that I really need to fast and pray about my calling, specifically.  He also said, "If the world at present is not willing to pay you for what you can do, then donate your spiritual gifts to worthy causes—perhaps through public service or volunteering—until the value of those gifts becomes so evident that people want to pay you a fair wage for them."  That is exactly my plan, and reading it there felt like confirmation that it's a good plan.  The reading in "The Ministry of Business" talks about listening to promptings and following them decisively, and gives some examples from his own life where he made decisions that didn't actually lead to where he thought they would, but in retrospect look like a very neat plan.  Three years ago a friend who was on the board of LDSHE asked me to be on her vendor committee.  The responsibilities were not at all up my alley, but I felt prompted to tell her yes, and join her in serving LDSHE.  It wasn't my favorite thing, I had to call people and try to "sell" them on vendor packages.  It was very uncomfortable.  But I did it, and we had a good year.  As I worked on that committee, I got to know the organization better, and felt drawn to offer to help with the website.  I called the lady who was doing it and told her that I'd like to help, and I'd do whatever she needed me to do.  "Whatever the IT equivalent is of sweeping the floors, if that's what you need help with, I'll do it."  She was reluctant, because she felt like it would be more of a headache to train me then to do it herself.  But we got together a couple of times and she showed me some things, which I picked up quickly, and two months later she announced that she was burnt out and left me in charge of it all.  At the time, I hadn't even started the Pathway program, and wasn't majoring in web design and development.  But now I have the perfect real life "lab" to test and stretch my skills as I learn.  My plan is to eventually replace the graphic designer and IT guy that we currently pay (who both do work for us out of charity and really have better things to do, so it's not like I'm stealing their jobs).  That may be my first paying job, and I can use it as a showcase of my work, which will help me get other work.  

Randy Pausch

One reason I think he was able to achieve so many of his childhood dreams is because his parents were obviously hugely supportive and encouraging- the math formulas on his bedroom wall being one proof.

Of course I feel that dreaming is important.  If we can't imagine a different life, how will we ever grow?

I don't remember having big, goal-oriented dreams as a child.  I was very dreamy, loved to play in the woods and lose myself in a good book.  I do remember dreaming about living on Pond Island some day.  I think I can manage living there in the summers- I can just picture myself living and working on the island all summer long.  By the time the children are graduated and I have my web design business going, my husband will be at the point in his career where he can just tell them that he's going to telecommute for the summer, and they'll probably let him do it rather than risk losing him.  I can just see us there, working side by side on the porch of the lighthouse, looking out over the surf.

Why An Art?

I wasn't sure what to expect of this class.  I never imagined myself in "business", it's never been a concept that appeals to me.  I love creative things, and also when I think "business" I automatically go to "corporate", which I equate with "soulless".  I decided to add a business cluster to my major in Web Design and Development almost as an afterthought, really I think it was a subtle nudge of inspiration from on high.  My plan is to work from home, independently, so it occurred to me that even on a small scale, that's "business".  So here I am.  I'm eager to learn, because I really do want to make a success of my business.  After carefully reading and watching the assigned material this week, and even taking notes, I've been both reassured that there is a place for me in business, and a little put off.  The talks by Elder Bednar and President Hinckley were, of course, excellent and inspiring.  The rest of it was inspiring, but after a point feels a little empty, like a lot of hot air blowing and not much substance.  I'm not really into the cheerleading tone and the pithy motivational slogans.  One thing I did figure out, though, is that entrepreneurship is more art than anything else.  Yes, there are rules, but all forms of art have rules, or the form would cease to exist.  So there are rules to follow, or be guided by, but rule following alone doesn't guarantee success.  Nothing guarantees success, there's always an element of luck, and creativity is definitely required.  I look forward to figuring out my entrepreneurship style.  Maybe some day I can write articles on how to succeed as an entrepreneur that are entirely pithy slogan free.

In other news, I got to work on a project this week that I really enjoyed.  I'm on the board of a non-profit that puts on conferences for homeschool families (Latter-Day Saint Home Educators) and I volunteered to develop some icons that we needed for our website.  It was such a great opportunity in many ways.  I got to sharpen my skills in Adobe Illustrator, and I gained confidence in my ability to figure out what was needed and produce it.  I love having REAL things to work on, that will be out there in the real world.  It's been my plan for this volunteer position as IT director to be a springboard for me.  I hope eventually to design and even code everything on the website myself- right now we have an IT professional and a graphic artist that we hire occasionally for the heavy lifting.  It makes me feel good that I was able to do this project and save the organization some money, but also that I've gained some experience and confidence, and produced something I can point to and say, "That's my work."