Mr. Schauster shared that he has been with the City of Belleville for 19 years. He shared that there are a lot of assistance between the city, state and federal government to help people who are starting a business.
March 2018
Jacob Gall and Antwan Stith gave out the programs and offered the attendees a chance at a 50-50 raffle. The final raffle amounted to $196 to one of our attendees.
February 2018
Jacob Gall
About Me
I am a senior at Althoff Catholic High School. I joined CEO after enjoying multiple business classes at Althoff, and wanted to learn more about entrepreneurship.
I am a member of Althoff Catholic Enrichment, National Honor Society, High Performance Volleyball Club, and Althoff's varsity volleyball team. I work at Centerfield Park in Fairview Heights, and have scored Holy Trinity Catholic School athletic events for the last three years.
I am unique, a hard worker, and determined to achieve my goals. In my free time, I enjoy playing volleyball, swimming, playing video games, golfing, spending time with his family, and being with his friends. I have verbally committed to play volleyball at McKendree University in Lebanon, Illinois.
About My Business
My Featured Journal Entries
Visiting The Edge was really cool. It was cool to finally hear from the people who were so supportive of our class business, and we got to see the event center we almost used. I had been there a few weeks ago briefly for one game of laser tag….But with the theatres, bowling, go carts, and other stuff, I can still go there and have a great time because of their numerous attractions. I liked how Keith and Mary shined pride in their impressive expansions and how they are unique in that they are the only business that does what they do. Their services and very broad and all appeal to the same customer, which will make them successful for year.
I really enjoyed Trinity Financial. Ive a,ways been fascinated by stock trading, and how you can turn around the phrase and make money work for you. It's a gamble, but one of the few ways to make significant money and all you need for it is money. I don't know much about what trades to make, but I definitely want to learn how to. I'll probably try to learn more about it over the summer.
I loved that we got to visit Copper Fire. I thought it sounded really cool when Renae mentioned it a couple months ago. The place looked really nice, and the food sounded very tasty. I could tell she's definitely thought it's been a rollercoaster ride with the new challenges she's been facing. Knowing her though, I know the place will do well eventually. I know my aunt really liked it when she went there.
05/04/2018
It was cool to hear more about cyber security and the internet and how to be safe on it. Mr. Bryan had some cool stories to tell, especially the ones involving Steve, and how he could so easily access seemingly difficult information to acquire. I find it interesting that such as new and innovative field is as significantly low in demand as it is.
I enjoyed listening to Mr. Wigginton. I liked the energy he has about everything he does. I particularly paid attention to his speech in the beginning about how small business has been decreasing due to massive chains and online shopping. This is because my semester-long English project is based around that concept. I actually approached him after about doing an interview for my video, and we met on Friday. I really appreciated his time dedication to help me out.
Lindenwood was interesting and mind-opening. Even though colleges are everywhere, I don't often consider the perspective of how it helps businesses in the area. The activity they set up was pretty cool too. I just couldn't think of any questions to ask. The participants quickly covered a wide array of topics in regards to the mock meeting. I also thought it was cool how they themselves at the university conducted a study to determine their economic effect on the area.
I had fun at Chick-fil-A when we visited. Mr. Gilreath. It was clear he knew a lot about the chain and its history, and enjoys and believes in what he does. He really does a good job at sharing his opinion that they are the best and wholesome in the fast food industry. I liked how he also emphasized about how the company takes care of its workers, even if it gets in the way of profit.
04/27/2018
I was pretty happy with the trade show. I felt I was able to articulate my concept pretty well when I had to explain my business. The only things I wish I did differently were consider multiple options for some of my purchases, and do the most cost effective option, and also order less shirts. However, I just have to look at this as a learning experience, which is the main point of the class and the trade show.
04/20/2018
I had no idea what to think after I gave my elevator pitch last week, so I was really excited and surprised to hear I won too! I felt like I worked pretty hard on it, as well as articulated my ideas effectively...
I enjoyed Mr. Horton's presentation. He had more energy that most of our speakers, and effectively demanded my attention. I liked how he hit on the point that good grades aren't exactly necessary for successful business people, but hard work and ingenuity are what drives entrepreneurship. I also found it interesting how he gave us tips regarding concepts I hadn't previously considered, such as sponsoring and avoiding sharing political views. He was one of the most entertaining speakers we've had while staying on topic for the most part.
I'm looking forward to the trade show. I think I got a good plan set up for my booth. My merchandise should be ready for the day, as well as my business cards. I still need to order a banner, and get other supplies, such as command strips for it and my tablecloths. I just finished a google slide presentation on loop to explain my business and product to display as well...
04/13/2018
Gaslight Vinyl was a pretty fun visit. While some of the bigger businesses teach some very valuable concepts and lessons, the creative fun ones are my favorites to visit. When people said wrapping cars, I wasn't really sure what all went into that type of unique business. Mr. Bach was really cool to listen to. He is clearly very talented artistically, and somewhat reminds me of my T-shirt vendor. Hopefully I can get an affordable good-sized banner from Mr. Bach for the trade show.
I think I am in good shape for the trade show. I was able to meet with my vendor on Thursday, and he said he is available to start working on the art concepts I have him whenever I give him the green light. First, I want to send my designs into the group chat and get opinions and ideas from my classmates, since I am hoping each of them will buy a shirt. I need to ask them if they want their names and the names of their businesses on the backs of the shirts as well, as it would add a couple dollars to the price of the shirts.
I also think I've got a good jump on my portfolio. I added the fiscals of my business to the business plan, as well as the executive summary. It may not be the most exciting part of a business, but it is definitely necessary in the real world.
I liked the things we learned about from Mr. Schauster. I knew business obviously helped city's economies, but I didn't know that some cities went to such great lengths to help them get started and keep them local. I'm glad that Belleville goes to such measures to help aspiring entrepreneurs and helping the welfare of the local economy at the same time.
03/23/2018
I really enjoyed listening to Mr. Artinger. He had a cool story, and seemed like one of the most creative speakers we've had all year. One thing I enjoyed hearing from him over some of our speakers was the history of the building his business is in. Artigem's headquarters in downtown Belleville may be one of the area's most historic buildings. I also liked his theme of repurposing some of the old items from its previous uses. It was also interesting how he was honest about not doing too well in school, as his mind was focusing on something else. I feel like his personality type has the best entrepreneurial potential, as his mind works outside our norm and thinks more imaginatively than most. Just one example of him doing this was his pitch for $500 to a great product title. If he didn't have our attention before he said that, he certainly didn't have that problem after!
It was very nice of Matt Warren to show us around Providence Bank. I liked how they explained the "U" concept, which I hadn't really thought of until it was pointed out. It was also cool that he hit on credit scores and loans with us. I had already taken several business courses, so I already had a good idea about what we talked about, but it was good he covered it so people while never learned about it before understand the concept.
I think my concepts for the trade show are coming along well. I have decided to do a shirt specifically for the event, and will hopefully meet with my vendor from last time to discuss designs and prices. There are also some things I'd like to ask my classmates about eventually also regarding design. Since I'm hoping each of them will buy one since it will be affordable, I'd like them to greatly enjoy whatever design I go with. My plan is to sell those on tables in my both with my logo displayed along with a board describing the idea and where the "You Just Got GALL'D" idea came from.
03/16/2018
I think I'm in pretty good shape on the business documents we're doing in class. My mentor only recommended a few minor changes to my business plan, which I would count as a good sign. Sometimes I just find it hard to be motivated to work on those. I enjoy shirt designing and actually selling the product much more than the financial considering that lies behind it, even though it is very important. I think I will also enjoy setting up my booth to emulate an actual store!
MMR was a nice refresh from most of our speakers. It was nice to hear from lawyers again instead of the consistent business people, especially since I don't think we have since the first quarter of the school year. I liked how they shared details of their most interesting cases with us, and how they felt about representing certain clients. It was interesting to hear about how they started small, and later expanded. I also enjoyed how they went into what aspects of the business they consider in order to compete with the other firms in the area.
Hamilton Callison was nice to listen to. I knew little to nothing about the wine and spirits industry, so his was a cool perspective to learn from about it. I had no idea it was constantly filled with emerging companies. I also liked that we heard his perspective on yet another person who had a choice on whether or not to continue with the family business. The software information he shared was also cool. I never thought to consider that corporate America's companies would use a lot do the same computing programs to function. His philosophy about how knowledge is the one thing that can't be taken away is also one I have heard many times, but is also a really cool concept.
03/09/2018
I didn't know what to expect from Issues and Eggs. For some reason, I felt more hesitant than usual to go around and network that day. However, whenever I jumped in, it was one of the more enjoyable mingling experiences I've experienced through the class. The workers for District 118 were very nice, and seemed very interesting in asking us about the class and our future goals. I was taken aback when someone started a conversation with me about volleyball, which I enjoyed greatly. I also enjoyed hearing about the two other student groups. I knew about BASIC, but not much about their history or what they do. However, I had never heard of Teen Court previously. It was interesting to learn about, and a really cool concept.
03/02/2018
I'm starting to feel a little pressure regarding the personal business. I know the deadlines are somewhat spread out, but there are just so many drafts and documents we have to do, which will be on top of homework we will already have assigned. I think it will be doable though.
The Men's Warehouse presentation was a very informative talk we all needed to hear. I knew the basics of interview etiquette and attire, but didn't know it ran as specifically as it did. I also liked how I learned there are even differences on behavior and clothing choice between the first and second interviews .
I really enjoyed Bob Bunch's talk. I always heard about the importance of networking, but he really stressed it more than anyone we've had speak to us. The way he goes about it, especially how he did in the example he gave us, clearly exhibits why he is so successful as spreading the word about his business. I feel like following his process is one of, if not the best ways to attract a multitude of customers.
Nick Bauer's presentation at Empire Comfort Systems was cool. I liked how he went behind his company's history, and how their products varied as times changed. I also liked how he explained why and how his company handles their production rate, which is more difficult than the average business because their sales are largely seasonal.
I liked listening to Josh McDermott. I liked how we listened to yet another multigenerational business in the same week. He was another that stressed the importance of managing everything else in life just as well as work/business. I also liked how he shared his feelings with us regarding his ability to take over his dad's business, and why he made the moves he did in his career.
I'm so excited that we are moving on to our individual businesses. When I heard about this class in the past, this was the main thing I was really interested about. However, I'm still not completely sure what approach I'd like to take for the trade show. Nevertheless, I know I'm going to enjoy this part of the class very much.
02/16/2018
Vince Ojeda's talk was nice to listen to. I love hearing stories about local people who build and later sell extremely successful businesses. I also sometimes forget just how local these entrepreneurs are. A few days after Vince's talk, my phone battery malfunctioned, and I got it fixed very quickly over at Experimac, one of his businesses. I also liked how he went into the basics if acquiring investment money, and the different methods to do it. I already knew a decent amount about the subject, but still picked up a little but from what he told us.
FKG Oil did a wonderful job presenting their business to us. They gave us the same information most companies do. However, they added a twist with an extra incentive of of gift cards to help us retain the presentation. In addition, they finished the morning with breakfast, which definitely kept us from being distracted by food while they presented. All the workers there were so nice, and I really appreciate their efforts to contribute to local events, such as our business.
I am absolutely astonished by our last-minute success with Belleville's Got Talent. Early in the last week of ticket sales, we were all seriously concerned our business and financials would be a disappointment due to our previously high expectations. However, our class all sold their tickets frantically, and now we are set to be the most successful Belleville CEO class to date with our class business. I had previously had dreading feelings toward setting up an even that would've had many open seats. But now, I anxiously wait to see our hard work for the event pay off. I'm glad we got the class business plan finished as efficiently as we did. The way we had a talked about it, I was preparing for a long and tedious assignment that would've dragged on for while. However, we finished it up fairly quickly, and it wasn't terrible to work on. Mrs. DiMaggio-May was a wonderful help to us with the endeavor, and provided good-quality guidance as we completed it.
02/02/2018
I enjoyed visiting with the Mayor. It was interesting to learn about his experience in public office, and how he also related it to running a business. He answered all of our questions very well, and seemed sincerely wanting to help us with anything he could. I also liked how he talked about some of Belleville's history. I had no idea that 64 almost went through the city and how Belleville used to have even more shopping centers. I also had no idea that Abraham Lincoln had a friend who actually lived around here.
I like the progress we are making with the class business. We might be still a little behind, but I definitely think we are making up for it strong. I was especially happy we picked up a sponsorship from the Edge, especially since we decided to go on another direction with our venue. They've treated us extremely well with our business, so I hope they really enjoy the event if they can hose to attend. I also think ticket sales will also improve. I'm going to meet with Mr. Marchal soon so hopefully I can see if he or any of his coworkers would be interested in going or spreading the word.
01/19/2018
Coming back from break has been a big wake up call for the class business. We have a lot to do in the coming weeks. However, I believe we will be successful in having everything we will need prepared. The business plan is coming along nicely, but is somewhat tedious. I think this will also go fairly smoothly though. Sponsorship and ticket sales could be better. However, we did just acquire a few more sponsors, and I just got some more ticket sales; hopefully everyone else is doing the same.
I really enjoyed Memorial Hospital. Mr. Turner was very helpful, and answered our questions well and in-depth. I liked how he explained the factors that went into into supply and demand with doctors, and how this affected their expected income. I also was interested by the process Memorial underwent to get permission to build their location in Shiloh. I liked his note on how we must emphasize the intrinsic value on our sponsorships. The president seemed like a man dedicated to sharing his knowledge with others, particularly the younger generations.
The etiquette talk at the country club with Mr. Payne was very informative. I knew manners and decorum could have extensive detail, but didn’t know just how specific certain behavior could become. Learning this information will help us in numerous ways, as all of us will soon find ourselves in interviews for jobs and scholarships, and at important meals where proper etiquette will be necessary. It was fortunate we could listen to someone who had a long history with the subject, and had seen the differences in etiquette around the world.
01/12/2018
I found Mr. Farquhar's talk to be very interesting. Even though the course focuses on entrepreneurship, it was nice to hear about sales, where the amount of work you put in still defines how well you do in the industry, as well as the financial risk that is applied to it.
I was fairly confident with those we selected for the event. There were many talented submissions, but the ones we chose definitely stood out. When we starting approaching businesses for sponsors, I quickly knew it was going to be tough to get any quick results. However, Kaleb and I were very happy with our one sponsor, Olde World Jewelers. The people there were very nice and made their support for our program very clear.
After being at PPM for an entire quarter, I had thought it was odd Renae never really told us her story. I thought it was nice she talked to us as long as she did on our last day there. I really enjoyed her story, and how she ended up in the business.
I really enjoyed the King's House. It was nice to relax and talk about the combatants to stress, which I have definitely been feeling lately. I had heard about the benefits of mediation, but never made the time to try it out. With break coming up, it's definitely some I'll consider trying.
12/17/2017
I really enjoyed Erica and Andrew Barnell's talk. We haven't had much exposure to the business world involving healthcare, so this was a nice change of pace. I've always enjoyed learning about the future of technology, especially since one of their main markets will be providing a cheaper and more pleasant replacement for colonoscopies for our generation. I liked how they talked about the business aspects they learned along their journey; what stood out to me was the age discrimination they faced even though they're 10 years older than all of us. That just means this will be a battle for aspiring entrepreneurs for many years, but it's definitely nice to have a heads up.
I found Mike Barnell's presentation with Alan Pulliam and Angela Willis to be very informative. All of three of them reinforced the seemingly universal message that almost everyone switches gears in some way, shape or form as they go through college or try to find what they want to do in life. I also liked how they covered some managerial lessons, such as how to deal with employees in certain situations and how to deal with customers, and knowing when to refuse service in certain cases.
12/01/2017
I really enjoyed TWM. The visit reminded me quite a bit of Rauckman. Both put large emphasis on developing technology, and how doing so will help their business survive. As they both elegantly presented some of their new equipment, they have learned the art of showmanship quite well, as they strongly captured our interest in their devices. I also liked how TWM put an emphasis on offering a wide range of products to clients, but not spreading yourself too thin.
I found Auffenberg's story to be pretty interesting. I liked how he referred to the automobile industry as difficult but rewarding. I feel like many of the places we've visited have said that's their mentality as well. So maybe that's just what entrepreneurship is: trying but beneficial. I found it amazing that he was so successful in his field, and never knew that car sales businesses were just as dependent on used cars as new cars. I never previously knew much about the automobile business, and he was a good person to learn about it from.
11/24/2017
I'm really glad that we have our venue picked for the class business. As predicted, once we determined this, we are now charging full speed ahead in arranging the different aspects of Belleville's Got Talent. I'm also satisfied with how sponsorship is going. I knew I couldn't think of everything right and wrong to do with arranging the tiers and brochure, and my classmates couldn't be better at helping me improve our ideas. That's one of the great advantages to having 22 different perspectives in this class.
I found Fletcher's to be quite interesting. We had never heard a speaker in the food service industry before, so it was a new and unique perspective for us to hear from. I liked Mr. Betz's philosophy of "pig committed" versus "chicken committed". I liked how he went over how many employees he has on a given night, and hit on how sales are essentially how every business stays afloat.
I really enjoyed Amy Tarr's talk with us. She was easily the most genuine, straightforward speaker we've had. I really liked how she not only hit on talking to us about CEO, but also how we will need to cope with the upcoming changes in our lives, such as going away to college and being exposed to new environments. She kept her talk informative, somewhat serious, and entertaining for us at the same time.
I didn't know what to expect from a head of a company's IT department, but I was really interested in Jason Eding's talk. I liked how we talked about Bitcoin, which I previously knew next to nothing about. I also liked how he gave good interviewing tips. I would imagine we will probably have to attend the same amount of interviews he did, if not more, before finding a job that applies to your education. He is also one of the many speakers we've had that talked about their college journey and the changes they experienced, highlighting Craig's message in "Life Ain't no Laser Beam".
11/17/2017
I really enjoyed TrepStart Day. One of the reasons I found this so enjoyable was that the theme and activities were specific to youth entrepreneurship. We heard from some amazing examples of this being applied in the real world, and interesting advice from them during the Q&A and breakout sessions. I was also intrigued by Jeff Platt, founder of Skyzone. I really enjoyed how he talked about his very early start in building his vision, and his interpretation of what entrepreneurs need to have to be successful.
The Chamber of Commerce was interesting to learn about. I never really knew nothing about it previously except for the occasional times Mrs. Seibers would reference it. I thought it was cool that you could make a type of buisiness whose only purpose was to help local businesses. I also really appreciated their mentality of shopping locally. It is the best way to revive yourself and the community. You get what you want and simultaneously keep your money in your local economy and public services, instead of it going elsewhere in the world.
I knew I was going to enjoy Mr. Nicol's talk before it started. It was clear he was successful in his business ventures, and I believe it is from the unique approach he takes to servicing his customers in finances. What I liked the most about his lecture was when he covered the basic advantages to entrepreneurship. I always knew why I found the idea amazing, but Mr. Nicol reminded me of those reasons, and even added some new ones. I also liked how he viewed his business as educating instead of servicing. Since he has loved teaching his entire life, this gave him a unique chance to do what he loves in the business world.
I think the class business is moving along smoothly. We are close to choosing a venue, and I believe that is the one decision that will help us get the ball rolling on all of the other aspects of the business. We can start deciding on decorations, finding nice ways to present the sponsor boards we will make, and other aspects essential to the business. I was glad that we were able to discuss the sponsor incentives again as well. I felt that it would be nice to change some of the things, but definitely wanted additional opinions on it. I'm also glad that we are definitely expanding our potential range of businesses to contact. We have now visited numerous Belleville business, many of which may be interested in sponsoring us. We also have the contact information to a large variety of business in the document we received from the chamber. On the sponsor side of the business, I am very optimistic for our success.
11/03/2017
It was interesting to hear from the Patty Gregory, President of Art on the Square. I've never attended the event, and don't know much about art. However, it was cool to learn about the business aspects of it. I would've never guess that more than $150 billion is invested in art every year. On top of that, I find it amazing that Belleville holds one of, if not, the best and biggest art events in the country. I also thought it was so nice of Mrs. Gregory to quite openly talk about our class business ideas like she did.
Even though I couldn't stay the entire time, I enjoyed learning about Precision Practice Management. Until the tour, I hadn't realized how big the building was, or even what their business was. It was cool to see a business that had grown so quickly and was still aspiring to expand. Considering their current size and the size of their building, I thought it was cool that PPM was thinking this far ahead into the future.
I really enjoyed John Perles's talk with us. I've always enjoyed watching The Profit, and thought it was cool that his business is somewhat related to that line of work. Whenever he talked about programming your mind to create the best possible "you", it greatly reminded of what we heard at Northwestern Mutual about training yourself through the adjustment of habits. I also found his message maturity and responsibility in business to be important, even though it looked bad on my part that I was late for his presentation.
10/27/2017
I'm glad we are wrapping up the badge project, and feel very accomplished that we met the goal for it! Even though we are in early stages for the class business, I do feel somewhat uneasy about it. Unlike this badge project, which was very straightforward, this requires a larger earning, more creativity, and significantly more work. At first I was worried we'd never find an idea because we spent a lot of time writing whatever popped into our heads. Now, I feel a little more confident because we are starting to realize what we want to do, and are going through the details of it.
I thought the 2nd meet and greet went well. I met the majority of potential mentors, and was very optimistic about several of them. I feel I had good connections with enough of them so I will be happy with whoever I am paired up with. I noticed some of the topics of conversation are quote similar such as the mentors wishing they had a program like this in high school. They also express the importance of networking, which these types of events help us improve at, and the importance of having connections in certain industries to achieve success. All of these concepts will be key to remember as I develop my own business in this class, and hopefully for my career.
10/06/2017
Since he had spoken at Althoff’s Career Day, I had already heard Mr. Lowry do his lecture before. However, I enjoyed his speech just as much the second time around. Of all the entrepreneurs we’ve heard from, he has put the most emphasis on how we are in control of our lives, and that the best way to lead them is to follow our passions. He also taught us about the basics of habit forming, and how we can reap the benefits and avoid the negatives from it. I also particularly enjoyed how he advocated against the norm of businesses’ strong and often premature desires to expand, and to do it with money held conservatively.
I also liked Kevin Pesko’s informative talk at Bank of Belleville. Despite my dad being a bank examiner, I hadn’t known much about the industry, and what went into starting and running a bank. One message he hit on that hasn’t been emphasized on by other speakers is the magnitude of first impressions. I like to think I left a good one, especially since we have to meet with him later in the year to do mock bank pitch for our individual businesses!
I was very nervous about our first meet and greet. I was always worried about what to say, and how to strike up a conversation with these people. Once it started, however, I realized it was a lot easier than I had built it up to be. All of the owners I spoke with were very friendly, and seemed to take an authentic interest in me. What really stood out to me was how most of them asked about what we were thinking for our individual businesses, and for those who had ideas, they each gave a useful piece of advice for what we were considering. I went in not having any idea what to expect, and went out with some new relationships as well as two recommended contacts for my first plan for the individual business!
09/29/2017
I really enjoyed the talk at Kaskaskia Engineering. Since their work was similar to that of Holland, I saw some similar themes in both companies. Both expressed care for their employees as well as their customers. I found KEG's team-forming to be interesting, and I feel like it would be very beneficial in businesses that heavily rely on major teamwork. It was clear to me that Geri Boyer knew what she was doing in this business, and will continue to be successful.
I had mixed feelings about CEO Empowerment Day. I really enjoyed some of the speakers, but had trouble paying attention to others. I was very optimistic with the beginning of Pete Visitin's speech. I thought he was going to talk a lot about breaking boundaries set by society in regards to young age, but instead he set us up for a project. It wasn't that I didn't care for the project, but I felt he had a lot more keen insights into the subject and could've shared more of it with us. I'd say my favorite was Steve Davis. My mom is a huge Elvis fan, so I had already heard every song he performed for us. I also really enjoyed his story about how the demand for his business came to him more than he sought it out.
I really enjoyed Dale Kurrus's talk at Kurrus Funeral Home. I had been to several visitations, but it was when I was very young, and it was for distant relatives I hardly knew. I was very intrigued when he went into every aspect, whether it was the crematorium, the businesses trends, or the financials. One thing I had seen in the program but he didn't get to go over was cryogenics. I had wanted to ask him about it but forgot to! I'm going to try and send them an email asking about it.
09/24/2017
I believe we are efficiently moving forward on the badge project. In regards to investors, we have taken to the "divide and conquer" method, so we can all contact investors to gain a learning experience in receiving the start-up money. While I am fortunate to be friends with an alum from CEO, I also feel like it is prompting me to immediately look for the easiest solution by contacting him with questions. I would say that what I'm doing at the moment is working smart, not hard. While this is good on it' own, I feel like if I don't give myself a challenge, I might not be prepared when hard work is demanded of me. I need to start making an effort to get out of my comfort zone and be more contributive.
I was very impressed with TFD Supplies. Tyler had made his business venture very simplified, along with impressive productivity (10,000 earbuds sold per day). Just like every business we've visited so far, he hit on some things we've already heard, but also emphasized on some new points not mentioned by other company managers. This include the importance of keeping old customers happy, moving on from a business failure and moving on to the next big idea, and persevering to break into a profitable business field. He also hit on something I've heard about several times in business classes at Althoff, but never in Belleville CEO: opportunity cost. Tyler talked about how entrepreneurs who become million and billionaires often lose many of the people around them from spending all of their time working. He said he'd never choose that lifestyle because he still wanted to spend time with his family.
Since I had always thought of Althoff as a school, not a business, I really didn't know what to expect. I had heard most of the stuff what's seemed like hundreds of times from most of our speakers. However, Michael Crotty made the meeting interesting for me. I saw him quite a bit around the school, but never really knew who he was or anything about him. Despite being a senior, his portion of the meeting was one of the first times I had ever interacted with him. I never knew his past was so amazing, and that he had previously played such a big part in CEO. After listening to his speech, I could easily tell anyone who had him as a mentor in the past was very lucky.
09/08/2017
I like the progress we are making in the badge project, as well as what we are finding out about ourselves as we work together. With our large group, we are fortunate to have several classmates that are throwing out good ideas for the aspects of the project. We already have an investor, and I feel we will continue to progress at this pace.
Holiday World was enjoyable, but not quite what I was expecting. I enjoyed the tour, but as I have been there several times, only two or three things we had seen were really new to me and others who had been before. I did enjoy the presentation at lunch, however. It was interesting to learn about their unique and expansive history, as well as their emphasis on great care for their employees and customers. I am already starting to notice that these two principles are the most commonly believed and practiced methods in businesses…
…I was very impressed with Egyptian Workplace Partners. Out of out all the businesses we've visited, this one by far emphasized on innovation and new looking to the future. They claimed their success by embracing the philosophy of adapt or die. As a result, they changed their marketing style to survive the changing economy, while competitions failed. They also hire the right people for every job, whether it's consulting for marketing or developing the logo. It was very clear to me why Egyptian has been around for as long as it has.
09/01/2017
This class seems to be promising. We are a large group, so I believe we will have significant contributors. In addition, some of us already have business experience and connections with local entrepreneurs. These advantages should be very helpful for our first project, and eventually the class business.
When we watched the video entitled "Producing the Wow," one fact stood out to me: it is clear that Belleville CEO is held to a high standard. In addition, we must maintain it, which I believe we will do. While the objective for our badge project is the beginning of October, I considered our start to be very productive. I'm thankful for the comfortable deadline, but I think we should beat it if we continue on pace.
Team building went very well. The men from Vertical Performance had a lot of experience with their job, and quickly got us to work together. Thanks to them, I finally learned everyone's names. We passed every activity, which they said most teams could not do. We were close to failing our last drill, but I helped our team succeed. I had realized picking up the rugs would be easier for me with my long arms, and decided to go last. I recognized one of my strengths today, which I don't really do often. This course is already teaching me to look for the positives in myself.
I found the Holland Presentation to be very informative. Mr. Marchal shared that it is possible to lead a company and be very profitable while still showing great care and sensitivity for your customers and employees. I believe these policies helped the company grow fourfold and continue to be successful today. He also explained that construction is a field currently demanding more workers, which means that the salaries have increased over the years, making the field opportune for young people. In his presentation, Mr. Marchal also shared many tips not just for leading and managing others in the workplace, but also for leading a well-rounded life and overall career.
I was very impressed with Mr. Zura's presentation at the Belleville Professional Center. He shared his story of getting into business, and made it sound very enjoyable. I particularly liked how he described his initial business as "playing the game" and that he used what he enjoyed to make money. I've always believed the philosophy of doing what you love isn't really work at all. Another aspect of Allsup that stood out to me was the record keeping they did for every hour of phone calls. They had their preferences down to a science for all the employees to see, which gives them all a common goal to work for. He also shared Mr. Marchal’s philosophy of investing in the employee’s happiness. They were pouring over $600,000 into remodeling the work and break areas for the employees. This first week has already shown me a lot, and has left me looking forward to the rest of the year.
08/25/2017