Entrepreneur Journal

This week I really enjoyed Guy  Kawasaki's video about passion vs. money. I think he really hit the nail on the head. We need to be more concerned with changing the world than having a lot of money. I like how he explained that even though he has made a lot of money and owned a lot of really cool cars, that to him, he really wish that he had enjoyed his college education more and experienced more. I think that that is something important to realize. Money will never be a replacement for the things we experience in this life. As we think about that in the gospel terms, we know that this is true. We will not be taking  money with us to heaven when we die. But, we will take the experiences that we have had. I think that experiences are what make us a better person. We learn and grow from every single thing that we experience whether it be good or bad. I like how Kawasaki suggested studying abroad. I think that learning about other people and their culture is something that is i...

I really enjoyed this week's readings and videos. They addressed a lot of the things that have concerned me about being an entrepreneur. First, I loved Elder Tanner's talk. It was kind of great that he was talking about the responsibility of the Priesthood because in my Foundations of the Restoration class we were talking about the Priesthood and I was able to kind of combine some of the things I learned there with the things I learned in this class and vice-versa. I loved Elder Tanner's example of his grandson's diligence in being a "100 percenter." I think we should all strive to be 100 percenters. Then as I was watching Jan Newman's video, he talked about being loyal to family and to God. I loved how he said that we should never be too busy to accept a calling. I think that this is an important thing and it kind of ties in to being a 100 percenter. We really need to take things as they come. It is important to remember to keep the Lord as our first prio...

I really enjoyed learning about Skill, Character, or Luck. I found it to be very thought provoking. As I have been studying in this class, I have been wondering if I would have what it takes to start a business. I have often felt like I do not have the skills to do it. Reading and watching the assignments made me realize that there is so much more to having a business than the business skills. Reading the assignment made me feel like it has much more to do with your internal drive and skills . I loved reading President Faust’s talk about perseverance. I loved that President Faust was talking about perseverance in a gospel setting, but that it also applies so well to every part of our life. One of my favorite quotes from his talk was, “Success is usually earned by persevering and not becoming discouraged when we encounter challenges.” I think that this tells me that when I am trying to do something I need to just keep going. It is easy to get discouraged, but discouragement is somet...

This week, I really enjoyed working on my core values. I think we all have core values, but rarely do we sit down and think about what they are and how they affect our lives. It was a good exercise for me to think about my core values and define them for me.  I think having your core values defined help you know how to direct your life. It can help me choose a career path. My core values kind of narrow the career paths I feel would be acceptable, but in a way that is a good thing. It is helping to direct my focus as to what I should do in my life. One of my core values that really directs me is being family-focused. I am still working on figuring out how to stay family focused and have a career. I am sure that in time it will start to come together for me. I also enjoyed listing my fears. Well, maybe enjoy isn’t the right word for it. But, the process of facing my fears was a good thing to do. It showed me that as I actually take the time to address my fears, there is usually s...

This week, I really enjoyed learning about Magdalena Yesil. She is an inspiring woman, albeit intimidating. As I read about her life and drive, it made me wonder if this is the career path for me. To be honest, I am not sure that it is. I know that many women in the church can successfully balance their family life and a busy and thriving career. I just don't know that I am one of them. This is an interesting thing to me because ever since I was little, I always wanted to have a career. I actually had planned to attend medical school. That was my lifelong dream. But, my plans rarely go according to plan! I ended up getting married and chose to put off my education to help my husband finish his. Although, in the early days of our marriage, I tried numerous times to go back to school, it never worked out for one reason or another. It wasn't until just a few years ago, I took a CNA course to kind of "test" the waters of going to school. It was then that I had a very dis...

This week really made me think about what it is I want to do in my life. It is something that I have been pondering a lot since I started pursuing my education at BYU-I. The Stepping Stones and Stars was a good exercise to kind of lay out what my final life goal is and the different steps I can take to get there. I actually chose three different options and wrote out what things I would need to do for each career. One of my biggest "stars," if you will, is that I want to always be available for my children no matter what. Even as they are adults. So, as I am looking at career options that is always in the back of my mind. Both my husband's mom and my mom, have been able to come and help us or visit us whenever we needed. It has been such a blessing for us and I want to be able to do that for my children as well. The Stepping Stones activity really made me look at my priorities and how I can keep those in tact while also pursuing dreams.  I love Randy Pausch. I had ac...

I have kind of always dreamed of starting my own business, but never felt like I had the capability of doing so. As I went through the readings this week, It made me excited for this class. I really enjoyed watching the video "Do What You Love." He made some very good points about finding what you love to do and not just doing what you think you should do. I feel like I often do the thing that I am "supposed" to do and not really what I love to do.  I also enjoyed reading the introduction to the course. It says that this course is the "startup of you." I really look forward to this. When I was younger, I always had a plan of what I wanted to do. As I got older, and life threw me for a few loops, those plans changed and many of them dissolved. Now, here I am, 32 with four kids and my priorities are much different than they were when I was 18 and fresh out of high school. This is totally fine too, but, because of that, I feel that I have kind of "l...