Millionaire MBA Day 18: Business Heroes & Defining Moments
by
Millionaire MBA
SMASHWORDS EDITION
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Copyright © Millionaire MBA 2011
First Published 2011 by ELW Publishing Bath, UK
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Contents
Introduction
A few years back, 50 leading UK entrepreneurs and business owners were interviewed in their homes, offices and hotels. The purpose of the interviews was to find out exactly what made them successful, and how other aspiring entrepreneurs could replicate their business success.
Those digitally recorded audio interviews were turned into a 'timeless' business mentoring programme called Millionaire MBA. Millionaire MBA is regarded as one of the best programmes in the world to teach entrepreneurial thinking and the 'millionaire mindset'.
Millionaire MBA is a rich, deep mentoring programme which existing and aspiring entrepreneurs listen to over 40 days. Literally tens of thousands of entrepreneurs (like you) around the world have benefited from this programme.
In this ebook, you’ll find the actual transcription from one whole day of the mentoring programme.
To find out more about the full business mentoring programme or to listen to the audio version, please visit http://www.millionairemba.com/
Day 18: Business Heroes
Welcome to Day 18, "Business Heroes and Defining Moments."
Today we study two main subjects. Firstly, we learn whom our featured entrepreneurs admire in the world of business and, secondly, what they consider to be their defining moments in their own entrepreneurial endeavours.
By studying these two insights, we'll learn what successful people see in other high achievers and, therefore, find more clues to success.
Secondly, by understanding the defining moments of our entrepreneurs, we'll see how it's often the simple things at the beginning of their business careers that gave them the motivation to drive forward.
Today's CD will run for around 40 minutes, so you may want to take a short break between each of the two sections. Sit back for the next 20 minutes, and listen to whom our entrepreneurs admire in the world of business.
Tim Etchells
I mean, they all say this, but I do admire Richard Branson. And it's quite interesting: I think most business people really do admire other business people.
I use an analogy that, if you're coming back on a business plane at 5 o'clock from Belfast, and you're in business class, and the plane was full of business people who'd been there all day, in business meetings and so on, and the airline steward, or when you're booking in, they said,
"You know, do you want to sit - we've got Posh Spice on the plane, and we've got Richard Branson - do you want to sit next to Posh Spice or Richard Branson?" nearly every business person would want to sit next to Richard Branson.
Because I think all business people, if they're honest, are inspired by other successful business people. There's no question about it.
So Branson is one that I think has done a huge amount because he's done all the things, you know: He's failed, he's succeeded, he's fought the big players, got good teams. He seems to have good charisma. So he's got all the attributes you want.
Phillip Green, I admire hugely, someone who has come from where he has.
I think Stephen Marks, the chap behind French Connection, is someone I've got a great deal of time for. It's just another Highstreet fashion brand, and what's he done with it?
You know, it's fascinating what he's done with it. And I remember, about 15 years ago, I think, he took some time out of the business, and it faded, and it wasn't as successful.
Then about seven or eight years ago, he came back in to the business, and someone said to him,
"Why has the business turned round?" And he said, "Because I came back to work, because I came back to work to focus on the business, and I put my mind behind it, and I just worked at it and focused in on it."
So I think people like him... but I'm always reading the papers, and one of the things I'll probably read after I've read the main highlights of the business news is a profile on someone because you're genuinely interested.
Tom Hunter
I think Sam Walton was fantastic because he started from nothing and built the world's biggest retailer, so being a retailer myself, hugely impressive.
I think Andrew Carnegie would be my all-time hero because he started from nothing, became the world's richest man, but then he realised that was only half the equation.
It's what you did with your wealth that marked you out, not the wealth in itself. And that's been hugely influential in me.
And entrepreneurs like Rupert Murdoch, I guess I admire him because he's bet the ranch so many times, not that I think that's a good trait, but I take my hat off to him.
You know, Sky TV was losing, what was it? 10, 15 million a week, but he stuck with it, and look where it is now. So he bet the ranch on that.
He knew that there was no doubt that that was right for him, and even though it was losing all this money, he still stuck with it. Persistence, determination, all these things.
So this would be three, very different examples.
Nick Wheeler
The few people who were around when I was younger were Richard Branson, who I think has been a fantastic role model, and probably God knows how many people use him as the entrepreneur that they admire, respect, and I think he's just done an incredible job.
And the other one was actually Alan Sugar, who I think is an incredible person, and just, I like his whole attitude, really. He doesn't care too much; he doesn't get too worked up about what other people think.
I've just read this book, Sam Walton - I mean, God, that guy was a genius. It was an autobiography, so he wrote or wrote it with a ghostwriter. I love individuals who can go out and change.
He went out and changed the face of America, basically, building up Wal-Mart - just a genius. You have to take your hat off to him. What an incredible guy.
Mandy Haberman
I admire James Dyson hugely, who doesn't?
Because he stuck with it, and he had the wherewithal and the business flair and go with it and build his brand and have his name as the brand and really go for it. That takes a lot of drive, and I admire that.
That young kid who had the scooters and - you know, good luck to him. He had an idea, and he persisted, and he drove himself forward. I hope he goes on to be continually successful.
At least he's got a good sort of background of supportive memories to stand on.
He may make terrible mistakes, who knows; he's very young, but... somebody who has an idea and actually goes for it, obsessionally - nothing else matters; you're going to do that and actually do it and succeed - that's what I admire.
Karan Bilimoria
I've also always admired the entrepreneurs who have almost changed the course of history, and one that always comes to mind is Henry Ford.
And at a time when cars were only just starting to be manufactured, at a time when people were still using horses, he was the one who could see the future in making the car available on an affordable basis to the masses.
He wasn't the inventor of the car; he was there to see the opportunity and translate that opportunity on to an enormous level that basically may have happened eventually, but he saw it before anyone else, and he made it happen before anyone else, on a larger scale than anyone else.
And it's those sort of entrepreneurs who almost changed the course of history.
Bill Gates, the way he could see, before other people, that personal computers were going to be the future.
And the way that he was able to say, "Well, OK, maybe I won't manufacture personal computers, but I'm going to be a specialist in the software that all these computers need."
That's being visionary, and the true visionary entrepreneurs, people like Michael Dell - where giant computer companies there, with huge marketing budgets, and yet he could see,
"Well, actually, with PCs, let's personalise them. Let's make them more affordable, let people choose the type of PCs they want, rather than forced a PC that they don't want, and let's deliver them directly to people's homes. Let's cut out the middleman."
Truly visionary. So there are some great, great entrepreneurs there who've inspired me.