Many things to be Thankful for:

Learning how franchising works has given me a new insight what to expect in owning a franchise. I see the good and the bad and I have witnesses the good and the bad. I can say I mostly like the good. I like walking into an establishment and knowing exactly what to expect. I can tell when it is a franchise owned company or an individual owned. I worked for the Hilton Corporation many years and they had a set standard. I can tell when I walk into an individual hotel that is not ran by a franchise and could tell the difference from the cleanliness down to the type of customer service I would receive. There is many perks to owning a franchise the brand recognition and the trademark is a positive part of starting a franchise. When studying the cases such as IceDelights the learned that this was not a “business in a box” there is a lot of research to pursue. There is no guarantee with anything and they will have to take a risk.

I love listening to Steve Job’s he is so inspiring and has great advice. He had been fired from a company he started but that did not let him down, he was able to start new and founded NeXT and Pixar. He eventually was hire back with Apple inc. and was able to head a number of great projects such as I Tunes, I Pod, iPad and I phone.

Acton Hero Nichole Donnelly was also inspiring she had to learn to become a leader and she has to work hard to gain credibility with others. She was determined to not quit but to continue and commit to building something create.

$100 Challenge is doing ok we have had some challenges in collecting more items to have a larger inventory base. The problem is not having an assortment of sizes.

Humble Beginnings!

B283

11/18/16

This week I got to learn about some remarkable women. Roxanne Quimly who with her partner founded Burt's Bees. I think she was not looking for fortune she was just wanting to make her way in the world. Her sisters were both successful but that track was not for her. She lived a very simple life with minimal expenses. She used her resources. Her friend Burt was a bee farmer who sold his honey off of his truck. She saw the opportunity to make Bees wax candles and then flourished into other natural beauty products. She never lost her humble beginnings if fact she longed for the time she can move back to Main.
Another woman we got to learn about was Catherine Rohr who was very inspirational in making a positive change in society be starting the Prison Entrepreneurship program.  This opened her eyes to what she was so afraid of. Catherine had faith and a vision and she kept her eye on the end goal. Everyone has the opportunity to make a change for the better. She was originally shut down but that did not stop her. She kept her eye on the end goal. She was committed to the cause and she truly made a difference.

My $100 project has slowed down for the season. We did not make the money that I thought we would be able to make. I wanted the girls to feel beautiful and I was not focused on the money. At the end of this class I will ship all remaining formals and dresses to a relatives store in Toole, Utah called Encore Dresses. She will continue selling these dresses and I will focus on a new project with my husband. These last few weeks have been tough trying to meet the demands and a sick father in law. My time is being spread thin. I have had a couple young girls that would come and let the perspective buyers in to look.
Learning the process and improving on the idea is something I need to take back to the drawing board. I need to improve upon what I have and look for ways I can increase the sales.

Customers are #1

I love that we have the opportunity to learn from real entrepreneurs. This past week we learned about Matt Stewart who has in his lifetime started 13 companies. He learned through each of them what his successful and failure where. I was able to learn from Matt that no matter what direction I am heading things can always change the course. We must learn how to control the inner marketer and to not always get caught up thinking that we can do anything. We should stay focus and not let little distraction like the "shiny object" get in our way.

Jet Blue is a great example of turning an ordinary industry into a great company. I personally love flying Jet Blue because I know I will always get exceptional service. That is what they strive for and has set them apart from the other airline companies. You can tell they treat their employees well and that reflect to the passengers.

My $100 challenge was put on the side as we asses the inventory. We have had a few purchases but I have had a family emergency that has not allowed me to be around the home store. This next week we will gear up for winter formal and try and bring in more revenue. The Challenge that we have had so far is repairing and cleaning some of the items that were donated. It is costing us more than we had anticipated.

First Impression

First impressions I feel is the best way to keep your customers coming back. I enjoyed Guy Kawasaki talk I even brought my husband in to listen. He is preparing for an interview with a Hospital doing their social media. Guy has this presence about him that keeps you wanting more. He was very engaging. So what i learned this week was the importance of first impressions. He talked about Zappos and Nordstoms and I would have thought the same thing about both of those stores. They are very accommodating to their customers that keep them coming back. Knowing that I can return any product with no questions asked is a plus in my book. I like to order things on line and it is a simple process to return items.

I learned what kind of leader I was and I can better understand how I can achieve success with my customers. I believe that we can become great leaders by changing the way we think. Not all great leaders are born, many times we learn and improve constantly. We try to challenge ourselves to be better and to be like Christ who was the perfect leader.

Learning what the difference between the Sheeps and the Shepherd and the Sheepherder remember to take care of the one and the others will follow eventually. Getting to know who our clients are know them and love them. It is a sacrifice to be a good leader but if it is something you believe in it is worth the sacrifice.

Acton Hero this week was Ken Zolot and wow! What a great enthusiastic person. He charged head first. He was brought up with parents that taught him a strong value of accountability. It was good to see that he struggled to be what the teachers wanted him to act like. He was an active boy who pushed himself to the edge. He gave what his customers wanted. He was not afraid. He held himself accountable for his actions.

100 project going full force ahead and is looking great. I do want to make sure the first impression is great. I want these girls to feel great. I want them to have a blessed life. I care what they feel and they are all beautiful.