Interview

Today I had an interview with the Uptown Normal Business Association and I feel extremely well about it.  I have realized that my experience in speaking with business owners in an attempt to host a Camaro meet last spring really helped me have an edge over other students as well as in the business world in general.  I have become extremely confident in speaking with people regarding things I am passionate about.  I know what I want, and feel I am pretty good at getting it, provided I can actually speak with the person making the decision.  The only issues I ran into in hosting the event in Bloomington-Normal was either the facilities not being large enough (not enough parking spaces) or not being able to speak to the person who would be making the final decision.  I am not sure what the problem was, or why people did not wish to host the event, aside from not having enough space, but each time I was turned down I moved on to the next site.  I plan on hosting the event again this spring, however, I plan on adding a few things to the event.  I believe all of this will help me in seeking the things I need to start my business when the time comes.

Speakers

On Friday I attended Entrepreneurship Day where I heard Vic Baldinger speak of his business endeavors.  It was extremely interesting hearing what he had to say, even though he was somewhat hard to follow. The basis of what he said was that much of his work ethic, knowledge, and the way he does/runs his business all stemmed from a 5 minute conversation he had Sam Walton of Walt-Mart.  The things he mentioned, where very knowledgeable and well worth taking in, especially writing down your goals. 

This morning the quest speaker in our class, Manny, gave some very insightful knowledge pertaining to running a small business.  The main thing I took from his presentation was that you should hire people based on attitude rather than skill.  The reason he suggested this was because you can always train people how to do the job, but you cannot train them on how they act.  The reason this stuck with me is because I have always thought that I would hire those who do the job best, with their attitude being the 2nd highest thing on the list of reasons to hire them.