Dar Allen was my first boss and one of the most innovative people I know. He owns two franchised branches of Dairy Queen's and is the founder of a medical device with the potential to create waves of change in the medical device industry. He is the kind of guy who sees a problem and think of a solution almost instantly. He doesn't just stop at one thing though, Dar paints and creates a full proof solution with answers for every possible flaw in his creation. He's the kind of guy who inspires everyone around him and does so in the most motivational way he knows how.
My three questions for Dar were:
1.) ME:What should my expectations in this course be?
Dar: The course should be inspiring. The enormous amount of commitment, checklists, to-do lists, timelines, and details can cripple the development and progress of any young entrepreneur. Building and reinforcing the right positive, optimistic attitude rooted in belief in self, others, and the endless possibilities will be the light even in the darkest of days.You should have an general idea of how and where to start a personal journey. How to develop action plans. How to develop habits that will reinforce those action plans. How to establish important goals and milestones. Becoming an entrepreneur is not a end goal, its an evolving process of self development, self improvement, and a commitment to serve others. The compounded successful results of my small personal action plans were the investments I made in me that formed the foundation to be resilient, diligent and productive. It may not seem substantial but to this day I believe my key to success has been my commitment to daily journaling. Doing it daily requires discipline. I have benefited in many ways I wont boar you with. but to make the point, it wasn't a strong business plan, it was my commitment to personal growth that gave me the foundation to become an entrepreneur.
2.) ME: what is an entrepreneur?
Dar: Those who say, "Why not?" instead of "Why?" Entrepreneurs are found everywhere from Bill Gates to the panhandler on the corner. One panhandler I met had a great home, explained to me he could make $300-500 a day (tax free), met hundreds of people everyday, was pretty good at reading people, worked outside where and when he wanted, had zero overhead, received every gift imaginable from gift cards to tennis shoes some lady even gave him her wedding ring that he pawned for a couple grand because she caught her husband cheating. So it's a class hard to identify. But I will say everybody dreams, but an entrepreneur wakes up and takes intentional action or steps towards those dreams.
3.) ME: What should I learn?
Dar: Well I think your course is of to the perfect start. A course that requires you to begin developing personal skills by reaching out to others, ask questions, and gain feedback can only promote entrepreneurial skills. Becoming an entrepreneur will require you to network, seek advice, find opportunities, and ask many questions.
Reflection:
I was surprised to hear that Dar actually believed his journaling contributed so much to his success. Something as small a discipline as journaling was the key for him to be able to self improve in every aspect of his life. I believe these small keys are the difference between successful and unsuccessful people. It just takes one small step in the right direction to get where you need to be sometimes.
No comments:
Post a Comment